Porter Susann Viktoria, Flädjemark Ulrika, Schubert Per
Department of Health and Society, Faculty of Health and Society, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden.
Department of Urban Studies, Faculty of Culture and Society, Malmö University, Malmö, Sweden.
J Health Organ Manag. 2025 Jun 17;39(9):325-343. doi: 10.1108/JHOM-12-2024-0489.
Municipality politicians in Sweden represent their municipalities as employers, bearing overall legal responsibility for the work environment. This study examines the self-rated knowledge of politicians responsible for elder care in the settings of home care and special housing in Sweden. The study focuses on two aspects of their role: their knowledge regarding the work of the key professionals who deliver elder care services (including care assistants, assistant nurses, registered nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and first-line managers) and their knowledge of their accountability as employers for the work environments.
DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: This quantitative study is based on self-reported responses to a questionnaire from 81 municipality politicians. All of Sweden's 290 municipality political board chairs were invited to participate and asked to extend the invitation to other board members. The study is part of a larger study with a longitudinal single-group pre-post experimental research design that evaluated a digital educational programme regarding organisational and social work environments within elder care, targeting accountable municipality politicians in Sweden.
Politicians may lack knowledge regarding the work of elder care professions and their legal responsibilities as employers. The level of knowledge was higher among board chairs compared to board members. Regardless of political role, knowledge of the work of care assistants and assistant nurses was highest, whilst that of physiotherapists and occupational therapists was lowest.
RESEARCH LIMITATIONS/IMPLICATIONS: The results of this study are based on a questionnaire designed to assess the self-rated knowledge of municipality politicians regarding the work of key professions in elder care within special housing and home care contexts.
These results highlight the knowledge imbalance between board chairs and board members and are significant because all board members share equal responsibility for the decisions made. Given the limited time board members have to fulfil their political roles, it is essential to consider this constraint when addressing their knowledge needs.
This study provides insights into the self-rated knowledge of municipality politicians responsible for elder care and focuses on two key aspects of their role. Examination of their knowledge of the work performed by key professionals who deliver elder care services indicate differences in knowledge levels based on political roles. Board chairs demonstrate a higher overall degree of knowledge compared to board members.
ORIGINALITY/VALUE: This research examines the knowledge of municipality politicians accountable for elder care regarding the work of different key professions within elder care, in both special housing and home care contexts as well as their knowledge of work environment legal responsibilities.
瑞典的市政官员作为雇主代表其所在的市政当局，对工作环境承担全面法律责任。本研究调查了瑞典负责居家护理和特殊住房环境中老年人护理的市政官员的自评知识水平。该研究聚焦于他们角色的两个方面：他们对提供老年人护理服务的关键专业人员（包括护理助理、助理护士、注册护士、物理治疗师、职业治疗师和一线管理人员）工作的了解，以及他们作为雇主对工作环境责任的认识。
设计/方法/途径：这项定量研究基于对81位市政官员问卷调查的自我报告回复。瑞典所有290个市政政治委员会主席均受邀参与，并被要求将邀请扩展至其他委员会成员。该研究是一项更大规模研究的一部分，采用纵向单组前后实验研究设计，评估了一项针对瑞典负责的市政官员的关于老年人护理组织和社会工作环境的数字教育项目。
市政官员可能缺乏关于老年人护理专业工作及其作为雇主的法律责任的知识。委员会主席的知识水平高于委员会成员。无论政治角色如何，对护理助理和助理护士工作的了解程度最高，而对物理治疗师和职业治疗师工作的了解程度最低。
研究局限/影响：本研究结果基于一份旨在评估市政官员对特殊住房和居家护理环境中老年人护理关键专业工作的自评知识的问卷。
这些结果凸显了委员会主席和委员会成员之间的知识不平衡，且意义重大，因为所有委员会成员对所做决策承担同等责任。鉴于委员会成员履行政治角色的时间有限，在满足他们的知识需求时必须考虑这一限制因素。
本研究深入了解了负责老年人护理的市政官员的自评知识，并聚焦于他们角色的两个关键方面。对他们对提供老年人护理服务的关键专业人员工作的了解进行考察，结果显示基于政治角色的知识水平存在差异。与委员会成员相比，委员会主席的整体知识程度更高。
原创性/价值：本研究考察了负责老年人护理的市政官员对老年人护理中不同关键专业工作的了解，涵盖特殊住房和居家护理环境，以及他们对工作环境法律责任的认识。
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