Down Sendromlu bireylerin manevi bakımı ve bir model önerisi
Özet
Down Syndrome (DS) is a mild form of mental retardation. Like normal people, individual with DS has many needs. This dissertation is about assessing and addressing the spiritual needs of individuals with DS. Thus, it involves development and application of a spiritual care model specifically designed for individual with DS. To design this model, first, mothers of DS individuals were interviewed about the problems and social and spiritual needs of their children. Based on the information obtained from mother, a spiritual care model was created. This model was tested on volunteering six DS individuals and their parents. Friendship, art, sharing, altruism, religious community music therapy and social role taking were main themes of the model. Data was collected through participant-observation, note taking and semi-structured interview. Spiritual care model was implemented for eight weeks. After the program, each week, feedback was collected from mothers. As a result, implemented model generated significant changes in the life of DS individuals and their families. At the end of the seven weeks program, their self-esteem were boosted; self-talking was significantly reduced. They gained sense of meaning and purpose in life; they turned to be happy individuals who live in harmony with their social environment. They developed sense of security and belongingness. And finally, they start to grow out of prolonged childhood. Further, our spiritual care model also produced useful outcomes in terms of parents and society at large. Parents manage to change perception of their children and start to see them as responsibleadults.