子計畫二 /
以科技創造更包容的高齡與多文化社會：外籍看護工照顧不同高齡者狀況下生活支持、環境友善、與有品質的高齡照護永續研究
112 年 12 月份報導
Transforming Caregiving in Taiwan: A Comprehensive Approach to Support Foreign Caregivers
In 2023, Taiwan embarked on a mission to revolutionize the caregiving landscape, with a particular focus on foreign caregivers providing elderly care. The goal was to streamline the job application process, encouraging more individuals to become long-term caregivers for the elderly. However, upon their arrival, care givers encountered significant challenges, including communication barriers and unmet daily life and healthcare needs. These challenges not only affected the quality of life for caregivers but also posed risks to the health and safety of both the elderly and their employers.
Understanding the Challenges
Recent statistics highlighted the growing influx of newcomers into the elderly care workforce, with 19% facing insufficient sleep, 16% struggling to understand the elderly, and 13% encountering various difficulties.
Survey results revealed specific needs, with a significant percentage of foreign caregivers seeking assistance in language translation, caregiving skills, and resources to navigate conflicts. Notably,74% of care recipients communicated in Taiwanese with their Indonesian caregivers.
Addressing Challenges Through Training
An analysis of nursing logs, interviews, and surveys emphasized the effectiveness of "professional caregiving skills" training, particularly in caring for elderly individuals with dementia. Caregivers faced uncertainties in dealing with the elderly, physical impacts of insufficient sleep, and unexpected emotional challenges. While family members assisted with daily activities, caregivers often relied on adjusting their mindset to handle the emotional labor involved in caregiving.
The Need for Personalized Solutions
Taking a broader perspective, it became evident that caregiving challenges are diverse and require personalized solutions.Rather than enforcing standardized procedures, there is a growing need to establish a dynamic support community for foreign caregivers. This community would offer consultation and assistance tailored to their unique difficulties, alleviating mental and psychological stress resulting from insufficient sleep and emotional labor. The goal is to create a more supportive caregiving environment for both caregivers and the elderly, ultimately enhancing Taiwan's caregiving landscape for everyone.
Technological Innovation for Enhanced Care
Our team's project focuses on bridging communication gaps and improving well-being for both elderly and foreign caregivers in Taiwan. By incorporating cutting-edge technologies such as multilingual voice recognition, machine translation, and emotion-cognition models, the project aims to enhance the quality of life for the elderly and provide better training for foreign caregivers. The initiative includes a two-year research plan, dedicating the first year to resolving language communication conflicts and the second year to addressing the physical and mental well-being of both elderly individuals and migrant workers.
The "Kasih Multilingual Speech Real-timeTranslation App" is a testament to this effort. Developed with the collaboration of UX/UI professionals and the expertise of the National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) computer science team, the app is specifically designed for foreign caregivers and the elderly. It features real-time speech translation in both Taiwanese and Indonesian, along with a user-friendly interface offering daily care, wound care, dementia care, and diverse resources. This initiative represents a significant step toward a more inclusive and technologically advanced caregiving landscape.
Adapting and Collaborating for Success
While the tests and surveys conducted provided valuable insights, challenges such as language barriers and limited interview time emerged. Active efforts are underway to find solutions and facilitate easier participant recruitment. Additionally, collaboration with GWO (GlobalWorkforce Observatory) is planned, exploring effective ways to achieve project goals.
The app's evolution, shaped by caregivers' experiences, underscores the multifaceted nature of caregiving."Professional Care Techniques" training addresses specific challenges, but caregivers grapple with various issues, from lack of sleep to unexpected emotional moments. The goal is to create a community where foreign caregivers can openly discuss their challenges, improving communication with family members and reducing caregiving stress. Rather than imposing rigid rules, the emphasis is on providing a supportive community where caregivers can seek advice as needed. This approach empowers foreign caregivers to navigate the diverse problems they face in their caregiving roles.
改變臺灣的照顧方式：支持外籍看護工的全方位途徑
在2023年，臺灣簡化了外籍看護人員的工作申請流程，特別是針對照顧老年人的看護，目的在增加為年邁個體提供長期照護的看護人數。然而，這些看護人員卻面臨諸多挑戰，如溝通障礙以及未滿足的日常生活和醫療需求。這些問題不僅影響了看護人員的生活質量，也對老年人和雇主的健康與安全構成風險。
了解挑戰
統計數據顯示，老年照護領域的勞動力主要由新進人員組成，這些看護人員面臨各種挑戰，包括睡眠不足（19%）、難以理解老年人（16%）、和其他困難（13%）。
調查結果突顯了看護的具體需求，52%的外籍看護人員希望得到語言翻譯的協助，50%需要在照護技能上獲得支持，35%希望能尋找處理照護衝突的資源。令人驚訝的是，74%的照護接受者與印尼看護人員用台語溝通。
通過培訓解決挑戰
研究團隊經由護理日誌、訪談和調查分析，發現「專業照護技巧」培訓的有效性，特別是在照顧患有失智症的老年人時。看護工在應對老年人的不確定性、睡眠不足所造成的身體影響和意外的情緒挑戰經常感到困惑。雖然家庭成員在日常活動中提供協助，但看護工多半需要依靠調整心態來應對照顧中涉及的情感勞動。
個人化解決方案的需求
從更寬泛的角度來看，照顧中的挑戰是多樣的，需要個人化的解決方案。與其強制執行標準程序，不如建立一個動態的外籍看護工支援社區，提供諮詢與協助給個別看護所面臨的獨特困難，減輕因睡眠不足和情感勞動而引起的心理壓力。支援社區的目標是創建一個對看護工和老年人都更具支持性的照顧環境，最終提升臺灣的照顧風景。
為了增強照顧的技術創新
本團隊致力於改善臺灣的老年和外籍看護工的溝通和幸福感。本團隊期待能解決語言障礙、情感照護和跨文化互動等挑戰，並整合了多語言語音識別、機器翻譯和情感認知模型等尖端技術。其目標是提高老年人的生活質量，並為外籍看護工提供更好的培訓。這項總時長為兩年，第一年將專注於解決語言交流衝突，第二年則專注於解決老年個體和移工的身心健康問題。本計畫致力於創造一個更平等和積極的工作環境，推動先進技術在臺灣照顧實踐中的有意義整合。
本計畫以使用者為中心的設計方法，聘請專業UX/UI人員，並充分發揮國立成功大學（NCKU）資訊工程學系團隊的領域知識，共同打造「Kasih多語即時語音翻譯應用程式」。該應用程式專為外籍看護工和老年人設計，具有使用者友善的界面，促進熱情而有效的對話，並提供包括臺灣和印尼的實時語音翻譯。本應用程式支援全面的翻譯語境，包括日常照護、傷口照護、失智照護，以及台語、普通話、英語和印尼語的實時語音翻譯。此外，它提供多種資源，如照顧技巧、常用短語、常用句子、社會資源以及相關法規。我們期待此程式的開發應用能夠影響臺灣照護實作變得更具包容性和技術先進。
適應與合作，共創成功
我們根據過去從看護工的經驗所獲得的教訓，持續發展更新這款應用程式。雖然「專業照護技巧」培訓有助於外籍看護工應對特定挑戰，比如照顧患有失智症的老年人，但照顧涉及各種各樣的問題，看護工不僅需要應對處理老年人的不確定性，還需要應對自身睡眠不足、老年人的突發情感時刻以及與家庭成員互動的問題。值得一提的是，看護工的日誌顯示出儘管家庭成員會協助日常活動，但在直接協助方面並未提供太多幫助。
整體而言，本計畫目標之一在於創造一個社群，讓外籍看護能公開的討論他們所面臨的各種壓力，並改善其與家庭成員之間的溝通，減輕整體照顧的挑戰，甚至改善看護工休息的品質。我們認為，與其提供一套適用於所有人的規則，不如創建一個具支持性的社區，讓看護工可以隨時尋求建議與獲得協助，協助外籍看護工更有能力與資源應對他們在照顧工作中面臨的各種問題。
