You’ve reached a standstill with your mother and father, who are in their late 80s. You think they need some help in the home, but they vigorously refuse. You’re frustrated because you want to make their lives easier. They’re angry because they think you’re interfering in their affairs.
Can negotiation and dispute resolution techniques used in the business world help defuse these kinds of conflicts?
Yes, say a group of researchers at Northwestern University. And they’re on to something.
These experts have developed a training curriculum on negotiation and dispute resolution for social workers, care managers, and health care professionals who regularly work with resistant older adults. Materials for family caregivers are being developed, too.
Instead of avoiding difficult issues or simply telling people what to do (“You’ll need home health aides several times a week for the foreseeable future”), professionals learn to elicit what’s most important to older adults and approach arranging care as a collaboration, not an edict from on high.
“People get into so many arguments when they get older. It’s something I see every day in my work,” said Lee Lindquist, chief of geriatrics at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, who’s leading the project. Its goal is to de-escalate conflicts and make it easier fo …
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You’ve reached a standstill with your mother and father, who are in their late 80s. You think they need some help in the home, but they vigorously refuse. You’re frustrated because you want to make their lives easier. They’re angry because they think you’re interfering in their affairs.
Can negotiation and dispute resolution techniques used in the business world help defuse these kinds of conflicts?
Yes, say a group of researchers at Northwestern University. And they’re on to something.
These experts have developed a training curriculum on negotiation and dispute resolution for social workers, care managers, and health care professionals who regularly work with resistant older adults. Materials for family caregivers are being developed, too.
Instead of avoiding difficult issues or simply telling people what to do (“You’ll need home health aides several times a week for the foreseeable future”), professionals learn to elicit what’s most important to older adults and approach arranging care as a collaboration, not an edict from on high.
“People get into so many arguments when they get older. It’s something I see every day in my work,” said Lee Lindquist, chief of geriatrics at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, who’s leading the project. Its goal is to de-escalate conflicts and make it easier fo …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]