Bottom up - documentary film about co-creation and co-research to forward change in homecare

An aging population with extensive support needs challenges the welfare society in general and homecare services in particular, necessitating new solutions. "Top-down" solutions are the most common strategy, despite policy demands for "bottom-up" approaches where those affected by the issue are involved in identifying areas for improvement, creating, testing, and evaluating new solutions.

Policy and research emphasize that the influence of older people as well as staff in the planning, delivery, and development of home care services needs to be strengthened.The aim is to create documentary films that showcase methods and results of co-creation and participatory research and organizational development within home care services.

Our objectives are to utilize the knowledge and working methods employed and generated in the Forte-funded research program IHoP, Home Care Co-created in Partnership with Elderly Persons – from Onset to End of Life (Ref. No. 2023-01749).

The overarching goal of the IHoP research program is to build new knowledge through co-creation and participatory research on how homecare services can be developed in partnership with older people, their relatives, staff, management, and policymakers.The goal of the documentary film is to authentically depict user involvement in practice-oriented research and service development.

Both research methods and research results will be intertwined in a portrayal that also reflects the needs, thoughts, and reactions of those involved.

The documentaries will thus visualize how the research is carried out together with partners, and what results and effects they yield.

Film can provide a contextualized understanding of complex processes, which can both support and initiate evidence-based decision-making, behavioral changes, and the implementation of new working methods.

By emotionally engage, film can contribute to competency among different target groups and thus change how care and support ultimately are delivered.