Centre for Policy on Ageing



Interests and skills of volunteers in an ombudsman program — opportunities for participation
Author(s)	Pat M Keith
Journal title	International Journal of Aging and Human Development, vol 57, no 1, 2003
Pages	pp 1-20
Source	http://baywood.com
Keywords	Advocacy ; Voluntary workers ; Social characteristics [elderly] ; Participation ; Nursing homes ; Complaints [services] ; Social surveys ; United States of America.
Annotation	Volunteers' reasons for interest in and skills they could employ as resident advocates in American nursing facilities under the auspices of an ombudsman programme were obtained from applications of 778 individuals. A unique feature of this research was that interests and skills were assessed prior to volunteer participation. In contrast to motivations for volunteering, skills of volunteers are infrequently studied, yet they have implications for training and performance. Age, education, employment and previous volunteer experience affected reasons for interest and skills. Less education, unemployment, older age and fewer prior volunteer experiences may identify those with greater obstacles to participation who may benefit from additional education and training. Data from application forms may be used to suggest needed areas of interaction. (RH).
Accession Number	CPA-040405216 A
Classmark	IQ: QV: F: TMB: LHB: QLV: 3F: 7T
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...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing.