site.btaInstitutions Blamed Most for Bulgaria’s Illegal Nursing Homes Scandal, Myara Poll Finds

Nearly 80% of Bulgarians consider the relevant institutions to be most to blame for the situation involving illegal care homes for the elderly, data from a rapid independent telephone survey conducted by the Myara polling agency showed, the agency said on Tuesday.

The poll, conducted from June 12 to 16 among 800 adults, found that oversight institutions are widely regarded as primarily responsible; owners and managers of such homes follow, while lawmakers and the families of residents are assigned roughly equal levels of responsibility further behind.

A smaller, though still notable, share of Bulgarians also attribute blame to others, including those aware of the situation and staff working at the homes. Respondents could choose more than one answer: 79.4% pointed to institutions, 64.7% to owners/managers, 40.9% to lawmakers, and 40.4% to family members who put their elderly relatives in the homes. Just 3.5% said the elderly people themselves were responsible for their situation. Some expressed uncertainty.

Asked to set aside media coverage from recent weeks, 39.2% of respondents said they had heard of poor treatment of elderly people in residential care. While these answers may be somewhat affected by the sensitive nature of the issue, the researchers at Myara noted that two in five reporting awareness points to a significant public recognition of the problem.

The survey found strong backing for older people to remain in their own homes even when special care is needed. When asked what is better for someone in need of daily help—such as with meals or medication—69.4% said it is preferable to stay at home, despite possible difficulties, while 22.8% favoured care in a specialised facility, even if it means losing some family contact. The rest were unsure.

Researchers at Myara described the topic as delicate and suggested that many respondents were influenced by social desirability when answering. The results revealed clear differences by age: more than three-quarters of respondents aged 70 and above believed staying at home was best, compared to fewer than half of the youngest participants.

A related question found 64.1% would prefer to stay at home if they themselves became unable to care for themselves, while 29.5% said they would accept moving to a specialized facility.

Three unlicensed private social care facilities were uncovered in the areas around Varna during inspections earlier in June. That followed shocking findings during earlier inspections in other parts of the country. Elderly people with their legs tied, heavily sedated, locked in rooms with horrifying conditions, without bed linen, with the window handles removed, and cut off from the outside world were found at two locations in the village of Yagoda, Stara Zagora Region, during a joint operation. The residents were 75 men and women, aged between 51 and 86.