Docilidade ambiental em uma instituição de longa permanência para idosos natalense: uma abordagem sob a ótica dos cuidadores

Abstract

In view of the population aging situation and the reduction of the elderly's functional capacity over time, there is a growing demand for long-term care for this age group, in the home environment and in specialized institutions. Thus, by incorporating demands related to the day, the environment (social and physical) can act as a prosthetic aid, compensating the decline in age-related skills, ensuring good performance for individuals and providing them with comfort and quality of life. From this perspective, the environmental docility hypothesis points out that the less competent the individual is, the greater the impact of the environment on their behavior, a condition that increases the demands on the environment in terms of its congruence and harmonization with individual requirements. In this context, this study aimed to analyze aspects of environmental docility in the living areas of a long-term care institution for the elderly located in Natal/RN, based on the relationship between these spaces and the needs of institutionalized elderly. To carry out the case study, the following were used: (i) description and technical survey of spaces; (ii) behavioral observation; (iii) semistructured interview with caregivers – professionals who accompany and help the elderly in their daily lives. The main results were: (a) caregiver´s competence to assess environmental docility in physical and social terms; (b) importance of socioenvironmental support to know the needs of the elderly; (c) good adaptive behavior of residents, although the demands of the pandemic have increased difficulties in this field, especially in social terms.