Post by RS on Dec 5, 2013 17:08:02 GMT
Terms of endearment - what's so wrong with calling someone 'love', 'dealing', 'duck', 'dear', etc?
There was an insteresting article in the December edition of 'Caring Times' talking about terms of endearment and how care staff speak to elderly residents in care homes. The same could also be said when referring to people who have a learning disability. Although often considered bad practice to use such terms when speaking to elderly residents in care home, the question is why is this considered a problem?
According to John Burton who wrote the article there are regional variations, for example 'duck' from the Potteries and Staffordshire. These terms are usually used between two pwople who are close to each other as terms of intimacy and close affection and as Mr. Burton points out is also used by market stall holders to customers they hardly know. Mr Burton suggests that in the case of care homes it all depends on the relationship between those who are using the words. according to Mr. Burton if the staff member is using such terms simply because they do not know the residents name that that is wrong.
But as Mr. Burton points out if we make it. Rule that such words are not used then we could be denying such familiarity and intimacy that needs to exist between staff and residents. Of course we must also remember that in some cases residents may like to be addressed in a more formal manner, such as Mr., Mrs., and Miss, or even by their first name been addressed in a more formal manner.
So the same could be said in they was carers address clients with a learning disability, simply because such terms as 'dear', 'duck', etc are used does not necessarily mean that we are in any way treating them unfairly, as Mr. Burton points out in his article when referring to the elderly in care homes. .
There was an insteresting article in the December edition of 'Caring Times' talking about terms of endearment and how care staff speak to elderly residents in care homes. The same could also be said when referring to people who have a learning disability. Although often considered bad practice to use such terms when speaking to elderly residents in care home, the question is why is this considered a problem?
According to John Burton who wrote the article there are regional variations, for example 'duck' from the Potteries and Staffordshire. These terms are usually used between two pwople who are close to each other as terms of intimacy and close affection and as Mr. Burton points out is also used by market stall holders to customers they hardly know. Mr Burton suggests that in the case of care homes it all depends on the relationship between those who are using the words. according to Mr. Burton if the staff member is using such terms simply because they do not know the residents name that that is wrong.
But as Mr. Burton points out if we make it. Rule that such words are not used then we could be denying such familiarity and intimacy that needs to exist between staff and residents. Of course we must also remember that in some cases residents may like to be addressed in a more formal manner, such as Mr., Mrs., and Miss, or even by their first name been addressed in a more formal manner.
So the same could be said in they was carers address clients with a learning disability, simply because such terms as 'dear', 'duck', etc are used does not necessarily mean that we are in any way treating them unfairly, as Mr. Burton points out in his article when referring to the elderly in care homes. .