Our society is rapidly ageing, and more people are living with long-term conditions and disabilities. The costs of care are rising, putting health and social care budgets under increasing pressure, while staff shortages are also increasing. If we are to provide people with the best possible quality of life, we need to also emphasize people’s wellbeing. A paradigm shift is needed, involving restructuring of institutions, identities and professional roles. Sustainable implementations at scale of innovative technological and organizational solutions could help. Since the covid-19 pandemic the concept of wellbeing has gained more emphasis, with the assumption that higher wellbeing results in better health. However, there are still large knowledge gaps on how to improve citizen’s, employee’s, and organization’s wellbeing.
Our themes
Institutions & their organizing logic
Currently, most studies focus on the role of individual well-being. Sometimes the responsibility of an organization is addressed, for example on promoting employee well-being. Because the individual works in an organization that exists within an institutional context, it is interesting to further explore the role of organizations and institutions within the concept of well-being.
Professional roles & Identities
The formation of professional roles and identities affect people’s wellbeing at work. To form professional identities, one needs to attain competence but also ‘become’ a professional – think, feel, and act like one. Moreover, vocational motivation affects wellbeing at work: for example, nurses commitment is being eroded by the impact of bureaucratic changes at management level, such as the setting of performance targets and increased workload. This in turn impacts their professional identity and can negatively affect their mental health and wellbeing. People who feel more competent in their work and engaged in their careers are more likely to exhibit a higher sense of identity and improved well-being. More research is needed on how professional identity and well-being are linked.
Innovations & technology
Innovative solutions, technology such as AI (Artificial Intelligence) and research in this area are urgently needed to develop knowledge, sustainably and at scale, that supports impactful implementation of programs or wellbeing of both employees and clients in care organizations. Such innovations and technologies need careful tailoring to specific settings in co-creation with societal stakeholders.
