National Preventive Mechanism Report 2015, page 31). The appointment of physiotherapists could provide a remedy and, having regard also to the complex nature of the interaction between physical and psychological illnesses could be beneficial. The NPM therefore stresses the importance of physiotherapy for elderly persons. Current assessment of requirements necessary An occupational and health care science assessment of current qualitative and quantitative requirements within long-term inpatient care is required, specifically from a human rights perspective. In the interest of persons needing care and the around 45,000 people working in this sector, the public authorities are not only responsible for financing; they also must set targets and may not leave this task almost exclusively to operators. The nursing professions need to be made more attractive The current situation has serious negative effects. Although it is in the interest of society as a whole to enhance the attractiveness of nursing professions and to create working conditions that will benefit nursing home residents, public debate is steered by the economisation of social work and thus also the pressure to make savings. The commissions often find that nursing staff are overloaded and torn between the needs imposed by time and cost pressures and the professional ethos and motivation imparted during training. Under-staffing during night shifts There is a further problem: there are no binding rules for filling night shifts. Nursing care during the night is determined according to duty rosters, which in many cases do not envisage any evening programme and are not tailored to the residents’ sleep requirements, which are to some extent conditioned by dementia. The situation is exacerbated by high sickness rates, burnout and early retirement of older staff who no longer feel they are up to the requirements of day and night shifts. For decades there has been a consensus within specialist circles that nursing homes do not provide adequate living space for young persons with disabilities and acute nursing needs. Inappropriate placements therefore must be avoided by expanding community-based support structures and personal assistance. Commissions have come up against such problems on various occasions in Vienna, Lower Austria, Styria and Tyrol also in 2016. The NPM has thus drawn attention to the human rights aspect of this problem also in the media. From a human rights perspective, any restrictions of autonomy, selfdetermination or the well-being of residents in officially approved or tolerated settings of long-term nursing care have to be avoided. . All of these facilities form the centres of the lives of those people who, because of their need for assistance due to their age, are reliant on third-party support. Dimensions of quality of life 102 According to current research, the construct of “quality of life” is mapped out over various quality dimensions. These relate to health and well-being, involvement and the provision of information, independence and selfdetermination, security, spirituality, meaningful participation and work, living and domestic care along with dignity and respect.