Krzysztof Paweł Kądzielski
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Kądzielski K., The Idea of Protecting People at Risk of Exclusion. A Study of the Activities of the Stocznia Foundation under the CAMI and Lokator Programs, “Polish Journal of Political Science”, 2022, Vol. 8, Issue 3, pp. 51–60, DOI: 10.58183/pjps.03052022.
ABSTRACT
This paper aims to answer the following research question: Through what activities the Stocznia Foundation ensures the activation and safety of people at risk of exclusion? Given the growing number of social groups at risk of exclusion (mainly the elderly, the homeless, those at risk of homelessness or the lonely), the Stocznia Foundation responds by conducting research aimed at identifying social needs. Its actions help restore the meaning of life to these groups, as well as re-establish themselves in society. As an aid institution, this non-governmental organization provides services in the areas that contribute to building a conscious, safe and wise society, actively involved in working for the common good. As an integral part of the CAMI and Lokator projects, the Stocznia Foundation cooperates with other NGOs and organizations for the development of innovation and science.
Keywords: societal security, social safety, third sector, NGOs, society, social exclusion, protection of the elderly
Methodological approach to the series
In the course of the research procedure, the method of theoretical analysis was used in the first place, but also the method of induction, deduction, synthesis, as well as analysis of legal documents. The analysis covered the conclusions developed from research works and scientific literature dealing with the issues related to ensuring the safety of local communities. An approach qualifying a comprehensive perception of the topic was assumed, allowing the use of different thoughts correlating with the presented problems in order to be able to compile them and discuss the conclusions developed in the process. As a result of the research and the projects in which the Stocznia Foundation took part, involving selected social groups, it was possible to analyze and assess their participation under controlled conditions in relation to the issues discussed in the work.
The following article is part of a series of three papers that will be published in the subsequent issues of the journal and will further discuss social ideas that are important from the point of view of conducting activities by the Stocznia Foundation for building social safety in Poland. The second article will focus on the idea of social participation and will answer the following research question: What activities of the Stocznia Foundation ensure the involvement of and support for children and youth? The third paper will answer the following research question: What activities of the Stocznia Foundation ensure social participation for the common good?
Introduction
The activities carried out by non-governmental public benefit organizations largely consist in pursuing the goals laid down in the statutes drawn by the governing or supervising bodies of these institutions. Projects implemented by non-governmental organizations[1] (NGOs) are based on main assumptions on which the general and specific objectives are based, which are important determinants in an organization’s policy. Both the assumptions and the goals developed by the founders and supervisory boards are designed to enable the implementation of specific ideas, aimed at achieving positive results for the benefit of a pre-determined social group (beneficiaries of these ideas).
Third sector institutions play an important role in the organization and implementation of public tasks for the benefit of the society and the related security sphere. Due to their size, and thus the number of the tasks they are able to assume, they are an important element in satisfying certain needs in the area of social life, as well as relieve state bodies of their duties. Aid activities should be understood as non-governmental institutions operating pursuant to relevant legal acts, which include the Social Assistance Act of 2004.[2]
Since ancient times, the elderly have been surrounded by esteem[3] and significant respect due to their rich life experience, the ability to solve incipient problems, or giving advice to tribal chiefs or leaders of communities. For years, the elders have been the pedestal of every human community and have remained so until this day, regardless of geography, race, values or religious beliefs. In addition, this part of the society which is characterized by a considerable number of years lived acted as a natural cultural transmitter, as well as a form of an erstwhile chronicler, whose mission was to give an eyewitness testimony of events as an example of specific values and rules of conduct or as a warning for future generations.
One of the outstanding communities that venerates the elderly is the Confucianist population,[4] largely inhabiting the area of China in Central Asia. Confucius (551-479 BCE) comprised in his philosophy five duties (virtues), one of which deals with the principle of hierarchy in the relationship of the younger and the older[5] – occurring in social structures, which was transferred to the then system of power. The relationships comprised in the philosopher’s teachings were characterized by a high level of respect for elderly people – especially in the family, where the head of the household was a model of virtue and life experience and morality achieved through sincerity and righteousness, as well as acquisition of knowledge, which should be associated with “[…] developing one’s personality, as only the combination of knowledge, experience and virtue characterizes a sage.”[6] According to Confucius, man in his perfection should be creative, friendly and noble.[7]
The primary reason underlying one’s interaction with individuals who make up the society is the desire to reduce the negative impact of life problems (experiences) by obtaining a multidimensional support in the form of countermeasures.[8] A group of people particularly vulnerable, and thus requiring a lot of attention, are the elderly, who are often struggling with various diseases, infirmities, and loneliness. In the case of the described group, it is necessary to distinguish the factors that directly affect their life situations, e.g. physical condition and the related lifestyle, health and fitness (including intellectual capabilities), as well as the impact of living conditions. An important role is also played by the immediate environment of the elderly, sometimes determining their acceptance or exclusion.[9]
The idea of protecting the elderly and those at risk of exclusion
Project: Cami – robot asystent dla seniorów
The purpose of analyzing of the CAMI – robot-asystent dla seniorów[10] (CAMI – robot-assistant for senior citizens) project and Lokator[11] (Tenant) under the Innowacje na ludzką miarę[12] (Human sized innovations) program is to determine the meaning of the idea to protect people at risk in the area of social safety. The CAMI project was carried out using the ALL solution technology,[13] the main idea of which was to extend the period in which an ageing person remained independent of the help of others.
Offering a modern and innovative solution in the form of a robot-assistant, which was equipped with an intelligent apartment management system by integrating it with a telephone, as well as a smoke detector and ventilation system, contributed to increasing the level of user safety at home. Another important system used to implement the project is the well-being function, through which the device was to be used as a communicator with the elderly person and help maintain social contacts.[14] The same system is also used for alerting medical services in the event of a health threat thanks to the installation of the function of monitoring bodily vital functions (health management), allowing early warning of the critical condition of their patient.[15] Equipping the CAMI robot with several mutually supportive intelligent systems allows the charges not only to save time they have so far devoted to taking care of the house, but also increases the chances of participation and encouragement of the elderly to participate in social life and self-development.
The project was also focused on providing answers within the framework of technical and technological solutions for engineers in the field of robotics in order to use more effectively the potential of available assistance systems in the near future. Other key points were to establish a specific set of personalized services in the social area and to improve comfort based on the data and experience acquired during the pilot part of the implementation of the CAMI program. By adopting such solutions, the organizers have enabled future generations of scientists (inventors) and people at risk of exclusion to lay the foundations for increasing the independence of the target groups.
Under the plan of achieving all the assumptions of the program, it was divided into five parts: analysis and adaptation of the device to the individual needs of the subject; creation of a uniform operating system for managing and supporting motor functions; integration of robot platforms and their optimization; communication and dissemination of results among the stakeholders; as well as the implementation of assumed goals.[16]
The analysis and adaptation of the CAMI robot to the senior’s motor abilities were developed based on programs using broadly understood 3D technology, equipped with sets containing programs of individual exercise bases, whose task was to track and adapt the program to a given stakeholder. Part of the assistant’s adaptation to the needs of the elderly allowed for the development of a comprehensive program based on their current health condition, as well as the time of day when the charge was most active.
The second part of the program is closely linked with the analytical phases as it lists all the individual procedures (tables and personal information about the user) that are referred to as the ‘backbone’ of the robot assistant. The CAMI device system is characterized by multifunctionality in the field of constant monitoring of the health of the subject, and in the event of detecting health abnormalities immediately notifies the competent services, supervises proper implementation of exercises, offers a dynamic program for the management of needs and communication using online means, takes care of maintaining interpersonal contacts of the user included in the function of ‘caregiver-companion’, as well as supports the ability to manage the house.
A part of the integration and optimization program is an area in which the robot is personalized to the needs of the user as a result of consultations with various specialists, e.g. in the field of medicine, based on relevant health tests.
The next part of the program consists in presenting to the stakeholders the activities and possibilities of the robot-assistant, as well as receiving detailed information and information about each of the operating systems used by the CAMI project. In addition, the presentation of the device took place at the forum of the European Commission in order to gain sponsors for the future development of the technologies and operations on a larger scale.
The last element of the project assumptions is a comparison of the set goals with the results obtained from the pilot program and the work schedule. The authors of the CAMI activity focused on describing the types of the processes that took place at each stage of the implementation of the plan, and the degree of involvement and participation of partners and stakeholders contributing to the project. An equally important item in the report was the consideration of the quality of the product offered, the response to the commands of the tested user, and the solutions of the AAL system. In addition, the conclusions were classified into three groups by the likelihood of risk that could adversely affect the effects of the program. The group characterized by a low degree of risk included: resignations of people participating in the final stage of the tests, in place of which they were ready to join additional recruitment of others. Another undesirable phenomenon was insufficient availability of functions of the robot, which the authors solved by eliminating or replacing unprofitable systems with others, more efficient ones. A similar strategy of eliminating negative assessments was adopted by the partners who had been involved in the team’s work from the beginning.
In the moderate-risk group, competition in the markets for robotics-based technologies was included, compared to the solutions proposed by CAMI using AAL solutions. Reducing the competitiveness of similar software is based on market surveys, which were analyzed with expert groups and then included in environmental strategies developed together with the stakeholders. An element of protection against theft or misuse of the ideas is protection of intellectual property of the parties involved, as well as a confidentiality clause forming part of the responsibility of the entity that proceeded to conclude a contract at a given stage.
The high level of risk is focused on the situation caused by delays in the work carried out, which directly translates into inability to implement innovations in the consumer market on time.[17] Projects aimed at minimizing delays include constant monitoring of each stage of the project, as well as the adoption of solutions based on stakeholders’ real capabilities.
Lokator Project as Part of the Innowacje na Ludzką Miarę Program
A project that equally significantly emphasizes the activities motivated by the idea of helping people at risk of social exclusion, and at the same time fits into the sphere of social safety is Lokator[18] as part of the Innowacje na ludzka miarę[19] program. The project is addressed to the sick, lonely, and financially oppressed people who have nobody to support them. The authors of the assumptions of the project are Joanna Basińska,[20] Bożena Kotowska[21] and Anna Kwapisz[22] from the Miejski Ośrodek Pomocy Społecznej[23] (Municipal Social Welfare Center – MOPS) operating in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski.
The idea of Lokator assumes that an elderly or sick person who lives alone will agree to accept into their home a person who, in exchange for accommodation, will act as a caregiver to the host. This procedure is aimed at improving the living conditions of both people and in particular offer help in the daily handling of matters to people at risk of exclusion.[24] The assumptions for the project were initiated basing on of the long time practice of the aforementioned MOPS employees, who undertook innovative efforts as a response to the existing needs of people. The acquired skills and interdisciplinary knowledge of the originators allowed them to connect those in need into pairs to maximize the performance of flatmates.
The innovation was aimed at two groups of beneficiaries who, according to the authors, are most susceptible to exclusion from society or have problems adapting to the existing environment. The first group included those who were dependent on others due to their physical and/or mental health condition, loneliness (also as a result of the loss of family or spouse), old age, difficulties or inability to establish relationships with the society, which might have been caused by reluctance or passivity on the part of the excluded person. The second group included people who had gone through difficult experiences (eyewitnesses or victims of domestic violence), inmates of children’s homes or educational centers for troubled youth, homeless people, or families that had lost their property as a result of a disaster. There is also a distinguishable third group, which includes family members with a certain degree of dependence, who, as a result of the lack of time, do not have either strength or means to supervise such an individual (a senior), and thus are not able to provide them with proper care. In such situation, people can apply for help to aid institutions with specific tasks listed in The Social Assistance Act.[25]
It is worth noting that the budget of the Lokator project also includes remuneration for employees and specialists providing innovation improvement services through organization of training and purchase of necessary infrastructure to conduct the research and promote the program.
Summary
Support and protection of the elderly and the sick has been one of the overriding duties of the society that respected them since ancient times.[26] Well-deserved respect due to their rich life experience, passing on valuable knowledge about traditions or the ability to resolve the encountered problems put them on the pedestal of every community. An equally important feature of the elders is the role of a cultural transmitter, which sometimes has quite drastic images of the past behind it.
The projects carried out under the CAMI and Lokator programs, as well as the analysis of their effects presented in the reports, are proof that the third-sector organizations in cooperation with the Stocznia Foundation take care of the protection of the most vulnerable people. The phenomenon of social exclusion does not affect only senior citizens, but also people who, due to certain past hardships, are unable to return to their original functioning and find their due place in society. Of course, the older part of the population is the largest due to the ageing population, but it should not be forgotten that it was grandparents who largely shaped the young minds who are responsible for the implementation of social policies in today’s world. Organizing programs aimed at the idea of helping and involving groups at risk of exclusion is a simple act by which the ego of the population can give back to show us the world. Caring for each other and those in need builds a strong and lasting society that is aware of support from other social groups. This strengthens the sense of security in the local community in which we live and which has the opportunity to develop freely and correctly perceive the degree of threat.
The Stocznia Foundation as an integral part of the CAMI and Lokator projects cooperates with NGOs and organizations for the development of innovation and science. The Foundation has been involved from the early stages of the projects, which included the examination and analysis of the needs and expectations of users, both senior citizens, their careers, and institutional stakeholders. They also participated in the implementation and dissemination of the solution on a larger scale. Thanks to the institutions such as the aforementioned international consortium along with the Polytechnic University in Bucharest or MOPS it has been possible to develop a novelty on the aid market, as well as adapt the existing solutions, and thus ensure higher efficiency and meet the expectations of beneficiaries.
References
[1] Nongovernmental organization, https://www.britannica.com/topic/nongovernmental-organization, (access 08.07.2021). Also see: Ustawa z dnia 6 kwietnia 1984 o fundacjach, Dz.U. 1991 nr 46 poz. 203, [The Foundations Act of 6 April 1984, Journal of Laws 1991, No. 46 item 203].
[2] Ustawa z dnia 12 marca 2004 o pomocy społecznej, Dz.U. 2004 nr 64 poz. 593, [The Social Assistance Act of 12 March 2004, Journal of Laws of 2004, No. 64 item 593].
[3] In the sense of giving them due honors, due to their age, social position and knowledge. In ancient times, worship was reserved only for spirits, deities and gods – the transcendental sphere, the spiritual world, where from, according to the beliefs, all causative powers originated.
[4] D. Jarema, Wpływ konfucjanizmu na system społeczny i polityczny w Chinach, Wydział Prawa, Administracji i Ekonomii Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego 2012, p. 40.
[5] Ibidem, pp. 44–45.
[6] Ibidem, p. 43.
[7] A.I. Wójcik, Konfucjanizm, in: Filozofia Wschodu, ed. B. Szymanowska, Uniwersytet Jagielloński 2001, pp. 347–364.
[8] Z. Jaworowska-Obłój, B. Skuza, Pojęcie wsparcia społecznego i jego funkcje w badaniach naukowych, ”Przegląd Psychologiczny”, 1986, Vol. 29, No. 3, pp. 733–746.
[9] B. Skałbania, Poradnictwo pedagogiczne. Przegląd wybranych zagadnień, Impuls 2009, p. 18.
[10] The project was implemented from March 2017 to November 2018 by an international consortium of 8 partners under the auspices of the Polytechnic University in Bucharest. The work of the Stocznia Foundation, coordinated by Agata Gołasa, was based on conducting research aimed at analyzing the needs and expectations of senior citizens, as well as their careers and social stakeholders. More see: A. Gołasa, M. Wiśnicka, CAMI – robot asystent dla seniorów, https://stocznia.org.pl/projekty/cami-robot-asystent-dla-seniorow/, (access 07.07.2021).
[11] Lokator, łączenie potrzebujących pomocy w codziennym życiu z szukającymi miejsca do zamieszkania, https://inkubatorpomyslow.org.pl/app/uploads/2019/03/lokator_www.pdf, (access 13.07.2021).
[12] M. Lewandowska-Woźniak, M. Biejat, A. Bluj, et al., Innowacje na ludzką miarę, https://stocznia.org.pl/projekty/innowacje-na-ludzka-miare-wsparcie-rozwoju-mikroinnowacji-w-obszarze-uslug-opiekunczych-dla-osob-zaleznych/, (access 09.07.2021)
[13] AAL solution (Active and Assisted Living) is an integrated system high-tech management in the area of full-care, healthcare, smart home and robotics, responding to the needs of people dependent on the help of others.
[14] The originators of the project provided for the possibility of interaction using the social function (full-conversations) with family or friends thanks to the monitor at the assistant’s disposal. In addition, they also include services in the field of receiving and implementing the subject’s instructions, reminding about performing specific activities (e.g. taking necessary medicines) or providing advice on request.
[15] A. Gołasa, M. Wiśnicka, CAMI – robot asystent dla…, op. cit.
[16] Ibidem.
[17] Ibidem.
[18] See: footnote No. 11.
[19] See: footnote No. 12.
[20] Joanna Basińska – Head of the Service Assistance Department – MOPS in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski. For many years she has been professionally involved in helping people in crisis.
[21] Bożena Kotowska – senior social work specialist, coordinator of MOPS. She specializes in addiction therapy and occupational therapy and also works as an academic lecturer.
[22] Anna Kwapisz – MOPS psychologist, psychosocial skills trainer, and sociotherapist, involved in working with adults and youth.
[23] Miejski Ośrodek Pomocy Społecznej w Ostrowcu Świętokrzyskim, https://mopsostrowiec.pl/, (access 08.07.2021).
[24] For example, help in the household and household chores, buying prescriptions, monitoring health, or establishing friendly relationships. Innovation brochure: Lokator, łączenie potrzebujących…, op. cit., p. 4.
[25] See: Ustawa z dnia 12 marca 2004 o pomocy społecznej, Dz.U. 2004 nr 64 poz. 593, [The Social Assistance Act of 12 March 2004, Journal of Laws of 2004, No. 64, item 593].
[26] In the sense of giving them due honors owing to their age, social position and knowledge. Worship in ancient times was reserved only for spirits, deities and gods – the transcendental sphere, the spiritual world, from where, according to beliefs, all the causative powers came. See: R.A. Rappaport, Ritual and Religion in the Making of Humanity, Cambridge University Press 1999.