Social Development & Welfare Planning

Explaining the causes, conditions, and process of elderly hospital abandonment and presenting a social work model based on the welfare and social support system

Articles in Press

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Faezeh PiazchianLangeroudi 1
Hossein Yahyazadeh Pirsarayi 2
Elham Mohammadi 3

1 PhD Candidate in Social Work, Faculty of Social Sciences, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran.

2 Associate Professor of Social Work, Faculty of Social Sciences, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

3 .Assistant Professor of Social Work, Faculty of Social Sciences, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran.

10.22054/qjsd.2026.94677.2784
Abstract
Abandonment of the elderly in hospitals is shaped by the challenges of aging, family developments, and shortcomings of the welfare and social support system. This research aimed to explain the process of abandonment of the elderly in hospitals and design a social work model based on the welfare and social support system approach. This qualitative study was conducted with a data-based theory approach and through semi-structured interviews with 27 people, including abandoned elderly people, family members, and experts in Guilan province, and the data was analyzed with systematic coding. The findings showed that abandonment is the result of the interaction of structural and economic barriers, erosion of social capital, inefficiency of support systems, and social welfare, which continues in the form of a process of "multi-level reproduction of abandonment of the elderly." The innovation of this research is to present a local theoretical-practical model of work based on empowering the elderly, comprehensive case management, and strengthening the support networks of the elderly abandoned in hospitals with respect to the welfare and social support system. As a result, this model provides a basis for developing intersectoral guidelines and promoting supportive policies for use by policymakers in the fields of health, social welfare, and social workers.

Keywords

abandoned elderly
elder abuse
rejection
social support
social welfare
intervention model
Subjects
Social Development & Welfare Planning

Articles in Press, Corrected Proof
Available Online from 17 October 2026

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