The personal relationships that are established by residents of a nursing home

Objective: The purpose of this paper is to study and develop a theory about the personal relationships established within nursing homes. Methodology: qualitative and interactive investigation built from the development of a grounded theory. The study took place in 6 nursing homes in the region of the southern districts of Cordoba, in southern Spain. The participants were 16 residents and 4 professionals of these centers. The collection of information was done through in depth interviews. Results: In the context of the nursing homes there are mainly three groups of people who interact with the elderly: partners, roommates (when sharing a bedroom) and caregivers. We have built some roles in each of these groups living together, on which we will base the dimensioning of some of the characteristics of these people. The situation in either of these roles is not static or permanent, people may change from one to another depending on various circumstances.