„Kundenorientierung“ in der Altenpflege?

Potemkinsche Dörfer sozialpolitischen Qualitätsmanagements

Abstract

Growing financial problems of the German System of public long term care insurance have stimulated cost cutting and rationalisation in the care home industry. The resulting decline of care standards has fuelled government policies to expand control procedures. Thereby concepts drawn from market research like „consumer satisfaction“ play a prominent role. Results from an empirical study are presented which show that feelings of personal dependency and fear from being sanctioned prevent care home residents from giving adequate answers in standardised questionnaires developed to measure consumer satisfaction. Consequently, the application of such instruments may easily lead to the construction of Potemkin villages pretending a high quality of care and an overall satisfaction of care home residents.