V magistrskem delu sem raziskovala življenjske zgodbe mater, ki imajo izkušnjo nastanitve v materinskem domu ter pogled na delo z njimi skozi perspektivo strokovnih delavk. V teoretičnem delu sem se osredotočila na ranljive položaje žensk v današnji družbi. Moj fokus so bile matere samohranilke, ki so pogosto socialno izključene in se težje preživljajo. Nadalje sem se posvetila materinskim domovom, ki imajo izredno pomembno vlogo v naši družbi. V empiričnem delu sem raziskala, kako ženske, vključene v raziskavo, opisujejo življenjski kontekst in okoliščine, ki so botrovale namestitvi v materinski dom, izkušnjo bivanja v materinskem domu in pri tem še posebej podporno izkušnjo pri sodelovanju s strokovnim osebjem. V raziskavo sem vključila tudi perspektivo pomoči z vidika strokovnih delavk materinskega doma. Na koncu sem raziskala, kako ženske nastanjene v materinskem domu in tam zaposlene strokovne delavke zaznavajo in opisujejo pomen družbenih in sistemskih vidikov v povezavi s problematiko žensk, ki podporo poiščejo v materinskih domovih. Uporabila sem kvalitativni raziskovalni pristop in deskriptivno metodo raziskovanja. Poudarek je bil na proučevanju subjektivnih doživetij posameznic in na ugotavljanju njihovih pomenov zanje. Uporabila sem tehniko polstrukturiranega intervjuja. Raziskava vključuje dve skupini udeleženk: uporabnice materinskega doma in strokovne delavke, zaposlene v materinskem domu. Rezultati raziskave kažejo, da so imele uporabnice v življenjskem poteku nekatere skupne značilnosti, ki so jih vodile k nastanitvi v materinski dom, kot so: pomanjkanje socialne mreže, izkušnje nasilnih razmerij, težave pri vzgoji otrok, finančno in bivanjsko nestabilnost. Vsem ženskam je skupno, da so pri upravljanju s tveganji ostale same, pri tem pa jim je kasneje večplastno pomoč nudil materinski dom. Prejele so materialno, čustveno in informacijsko oporo, obenem pa korenito spremenile svoje življenje z bivanjem v tako raznovrstni skupnosti. Izkazalo se je, da strokovne delavke, vključene v raziskavo, pri svojem delu izhajajo iz življenjskih zgodb uporabnic in njihovih potreb, obenem pa ves čas lovijo ravnovesje z delom s skupnostjo. Glavno vodilo materinskih domov je ženske opremiti za samostojno in kakovostno življenje. Tako ženske, nastanjene v materinskih domovih kot tudi strokovne delavke, zaposlene v njem, izpostavijo, da negotovi življenjski položaji, povečujejo tveganja za ranljive položaje žensk. Slednje pomeni, da ni več zgolj enega tipa uporabnic materinskih domov, temveč se nastanitev tam lahko zgodi vsaki. Ugotavljam, da je slišanje življenjskih zgodb s strani strokovnega osebja pomembna podporna intervencija že sama po sebi. Pri tem je pomembno, da se pri delu z ljudmi vedno izhaja iz njihovih vsakdanjih kontekstov in pomenov, ki jih imajo njihove življenjske okoliščine zanje. Ključno pa je opozarjanje na družbene in sistemske vidike, ki ustvarjajo negotove in ranljive položaje za ženske. This MA thesis examines life stories of mothers with experience of living in a maternity home and the view of working with them from the perspective of professional workers. The theoretical part deals with the vulnerable positions of women in today's society. The main focus is on single mothers, who are often socially excluded and economically challenged. The research continues with the description of maternity homes, which have an especially important role in our society. The practical part of the thesis includes my research on how women included in my study describe their life context and circumstances which led to their accomodation in a maternity home. Furthermore, it describes their experiences of living in a maternity home and support received by cooperation with the professional staff. My research includes a perspective of aid from the professional workers in the maternity home. The final part of my thesis includes my examination of how the women living in a maternity home and the professional workers eployed there perceive and describe the significance of societal and systematic aspects in connection with the issue of women seeking support in maternity homes. I have used a qualitative research approach and a descriptive research method. The emphasis was on the study of subjective experiences of individuals and on determining the meaning of these to them. I have used the semi-structured interview technique. The study includes two groups of participants: the users of a maternity home and the professional workers employed in a maternity home. The research results show that the users of a maternity home had some similar characteristics in the course of their lives, which led them to the accommodation in a maternity home. The found characteristics are as followed: lack of a social network, experiences of violent relationships, difficulties in raising children, and financial and residential instability. What all of the women have in common is that while dealing with these risks, they have ended up alone, with the maternity home later providing them with multilayered help. They have received material, emotional and informational support, and at the same time radically changed their life by living in such a diverse community. It turns out that the professional workers involved in this study, derive their work from life stories of the maternity home users and their needs, while simultaneously constantly finding a balance with working with the community. The maternity homes' main goal is to equip women for an independent life of good quality. Both women housed in maternity homes and professional workers employed there, point out that uncertain living conditions increase the risks for women's vulnerable positions. This means that there is no such thing as a certain type of maternity home user anymore as any woman could eventually be accommodated there. My findings show that the sole listening to the life stories from the side of the professional staff is an important supportive intervention by itself already. The important thing by doing so, is that when working with people, one always generates rapport from their everyday contexts and importances which their life circumstances have for them. It is crucial to draw attention to societal and systematic aspects which create precarious and vulnerable positions for women.