Lecturer, Gold Mantis School of Architecture, Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
Lecturer, School of Environment, Education and Development, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
Inquiry. 2023 Jan-Dec;60:469580231162534. doi: 10.1177/00469580231162534.
In 2021 the State Council set out a plan to address the challenges posed by China's aging population, particularly through the consolidation of community home care services, including the provision of daycare centers. This study focuses on the provision of daycare centers in Dalian, a key city in Northeast China, and utilizes Mary Shaw's "housing and health" model to conceptualize daycare centers as elements in a network that encompasse home and neighborhood. Furthermore, the study considers how daycare centers may affect this network, particularly when it comes to contributing to the well-being of older people and how they adapt to the local culture. A survey was conducted across 19 daycare centers to determine the services they provide. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 8 older people living in Dalian, and their homes were surveyed using the EVOLVE Tool. Additional interviews were conducted with 11 people in outdoor neighborhood spaces and daycare centers. The interviewees were asked to provide insights about their homes, neighborhoods, and daycare centers. The interview and survey data uncovered themes around socialization, nutrition, and personal hygiene by employing the thematic analysis method. The results revealed that daycare centers theoretically compensated for the missing functions in the community; however, residents' cultural awareness and consumption habits prevented daycare centers from being used optimally, thereby failing to improve the well-being of older people. Thus, in the process of improving the socialist market economy, the government should enhance the publicity of these facilities and retain welfare as much as possible. Funds should also be allocated to protect older people's basic needs.
2021 年，中国国务院制定了应对人口老龄化挑战的计划，特别是通过整合社区家庭护理服务，包括提供日托中心。本研究聚焦于中国东北地区重要城市大连的日托中心，利用玛丽·肖的“住房与健康”模型，将日托中心概念化为家庭和邻里网络中的元素。此外，该研究还考虑了日托中心可能如何影响这一网络，特别是在促进老年人福祉以及它们如何适应当地文化方面。本研究通过对 19 个日托中心进行调查，确定了它们提供的服务。对居住在大连的 8 位老年人进行了半结构化访谈，并使用 EVOLVE 工具对他们的家庭进行了调查。还对户外邻里空间和日托中心的 11 人进行了额外的访谈。受访者被要求提供有关他们的家庭、邻里和日托中心的见解。通过采用主题分析方法，访谈和调查数据揭示了有关社交、营养和个人卫生的主题。结果表明，日托中心理论上弥补了社区中缺失的功能；然而，居民的文化意识和消费习惯阻止了日托中心的最佳利用，从而未能改善老年人的福祉。因此，在完善社会主义市场经济的过程中，政府应加强对这些设施的宣传，并尽可能保留福利。还应分配资金来保护老年人的基本需求。
