Geriatric residences, from institutionalization to estrangement

Abstract

In this article the hypothesis that geriatric institutions are totalizing centers is validated, in other words, they have all the qualities which Erving Goffman once described for this kind of centers: they keep their interns life, and, at the same time, they expel them from society. Everyday life has been divided in several stages: entry, adaptation or integration, the process of mortification, daily life, social control, social relationships, secondary strategies of adaptation, the acculturation or the own subculture, the institutionalization and the totalisation. These section are displayed, in a second part of the article, in order to make possible the comparison and validation, again, of the hypothesis of the totalisation with standard operating procedures. For this, some recent documents (2012-2013) are shown in order to give the clues to discover how to avoid the degradation of life in these centers. Summarizing, this article gives some alternatives and advices to "humanize" and prioritize individuals, interns and workers, who not only aren't disappearing but increasing, are given.