THE MANAGEMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICE FOR THE ELDERLY OF MUEANG PHAI SUBDISTRICT ADMINISTRATIVE ORGANIZATION, ARANYAPRATHET DISTRICT, SA KAEO PROVINCE

Abstract

        The objectives of this research were 1) To investigate the social welfare for the elderly of Mueang Phai subdistrict administrative organization, Aranyaprathet district, Sa Kaeo province and 2) To investigate the pattern of the management of social service for the elderly of Mueang Phai subdistrict administrative organization, Aranyaprathet district, Sa Kaeo province. This research integrating quantitative and qualitative data in a mixed method study. It was conducted as a descriptive study. The sample group is the 216 elderly, aged 60 years and over, who lived in Mueang Phai subdistrict administrative organization, Aranyaprathet district, Sa Kaeo province. The provider in the qualitative study are 16 persons including administrators and officers of local administrative organizations, the officers who are responsible for social welfare for the elderly, the director of Mueang Phai Health Promoting Hospital, the director of Khlong Nam Sai Health Promoting Hospital, the community leaders or community representatives who are stakeholders, and the elderly caregivers. The instruments used in this research were questionnaires and focus group discussions. The questionnaires were used in the quantitative study to investigate the needs of social welfare for the elderly in 7 aspects. The focus group discussions were used in the qualitative study by collecting information from stakeholders in the social welfare provision of Mueang Phai subdistrict administrative organization, Aranyaprathet district, Sa Kaeo province to discover the guidelines for the appropriate management of social service for the elderly. Quantitative data analysis was performed using the statistical package program. Qualitative data analysis was achieved through content analysis.

        The research results were found that: 1) The overview of the appropriate management of social service for the elderly is very high (average 4.41). As considered in each aspect, it was found that the elderly requested for health care aspect as their first priority. Entitled to free hospital treatment is in the highest demand. In the social service aspect, the majority of the elderly requested for subsistence allowance. In the work and wage aspect, the elderly requested a budget to support their careers. In the recreational aspect, the elderly requested for tourism promotion in local and upcountry. In the accommodation aspect, the elderly requested for adult foster care homes for homeless elders. In the education and learning aspect, the elderly demanded lifelong learning courses and a mobile public library. In the social security aspect, the elderly desired to utilize a body of knowledge gained through project participation in social and community development. 2) For the pattern of the management of social service for the elderly, it was found that the appropriate management of social welfare for the elderly requires the guidelines for the appropriate management of social welfare for the elderly in each age band. The elderly were divided into three age bands, namely, early-elderly (60–69 years old), mid-elderly (70–79 years old), and late-elderly (80 years and over).