‘In their own words’: Capturing the voices of older women from Black and minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds in order to understand their perceptions of dignity and care with dignity, with a focus on social care Final: Report – SCRA1012

Research evidence indicates the need for studies that explore the salience of dignity from older people’s perspectives, and that capture what care with dignity means to them. In order to capture the expectations and experiences of older women, the research team worked with community researchers (CRs) to record the views of older Black and minority ethnic (BME) women, producing digital stories and pictures, and an analysis of the data gathered via the interviews. Also important in building the picture of care expectations and experiences were the perceptions of providers of social services that were gathered via an all-Wales survey.
Study aims
1. To contribute to current conceptual and theoretical debates on dignity in social care relations
2. To capture the perceptions of dignity, and care expectations of older, community dwelling women, with a focus on those aged 50 and older
3. To explore service providers’ perceptions of dignity, and of the care experiences and expectations of older women of minority ethnic backgrounds, and to identify the resources available for them to draw on.

This report provides a summary and full findings of the study