Abstract
This study has been performed to explore conveniences and inconveniences of daily lives in rural residential care facilities among the elderly residents. In this study, five males and seven females aged 68 to 78 were asked about socio-familial and physical aspects of their daily lives in the facilities such as meals, social activities, family visits, recreation, and health care. The answers of the qualitative interview were drawn as follow; first, the residents perceived well planned regular meals and snacks, free visits of friends, regularly supervised daily sanitary activities, periodic outdoor activities, education programs provided by religious experts, and pastoral farming lives as most convenient aspects of the retirement facilities. In addition, some felt that facility life made them free of familial conflicts, while others appealed fear of being forgotten because of distant location. On the other hand, they perceived the supervised group activities and meals as major inconveniences. They also felt persistently depressed when closely observing serious illness or deaths of their co-residents. Therefore in this study, suggestions were made as follows: first, combination of normal family life and retirement facility should be developed in the mixed form of community welfare center and shared home. Second, intensive medical care facilities should be in collaboration with the retirement facilities, so that the residents are relieved from stressful contacts with extremely ill patients in the residential area.
