on one hand and towards protecting them from anything bad and to doing no harm on the other hand. Dignified care respects the individual personality and the right to self-determination and promotes and esteems autonomy, because self-determination and autonomy are important benchmarks for the quality of life of each human being. Therefore, life in retirement and nursing homes should be as normal as possible. Daily routine should follow the individual human rhythm and not rules that have been determined arbitrarily by institutions. During visits, some facilities lacked a cosy and appealing ambience. They looked shabby and bare and were not personalised. In one facility in Salzburg, the smell of urine and faeces was noticeable even in the dining area. For elderly people, in particular those who suffer from dementia, a daily routine that resembles normality is very important. In this respect, many retirement and nursing homes are attempting to find their own, new approaches. For example, nursing wards are set up as house communities. They are built around live-in kitchens, where food is freshly prepared together with the residents and other daily activities take place. Specially trained staff is available to create the daily routine with the elderly – and not just for them. However, they themselves do not carry out any nursing activities. In smaller units that are furnished in a homely way, residents can participate in meal preparation, cooking, folding napkins, ironing, etc. and experience personal attention and appreciation that is perceived as important. Even if participating in these activities is no longer possible, memories of favourite dishes or family celebrations are triggered by smells, which has a positive effect on persons with cognitive impairment. The goal is to create a familiar living atmosphere that gives those with dementia security and a feeling of safety, thus creating the feeling of being at home. House community concept – “live-in kitchen” and “living.room” The house community concept is also suitable for larger retirement and nursing homes. It can minimise the structural deficiencies of large facilities by implementing activities and addressing the life biography of the individual residents. This type of offering can also be set up in accordance with regional particularities, e.g. in a Lower Austrian facility as “live-in kitchen” (“Kuchl”) or as “living.room” (“Wohn.Zimmer”) in a facility in Vienna. In order to realise the house community concept, appropriate staff framework conditions are necessary. In a retirement and nursing home in Carinthia, Commission 3 found that this model is also bound to fail completely if there is no assisting staff to implement it. Mealtimes and bedtimes are indicators from which the culture of facilities, i.e. the level of autonomy and individuality, can be derived. Retirement and nursing homes must also take into consideration to a greater degree that they are providing a home for people with very different habits and needs who want to retain their accustomed Permitting autonomy and individuality 32