Supply and demand: Brokerage as the new tango in home care.

The performance of home care globally is significantly impacted by the political reforms in the public and private sectors. This research investigated the Australian contexts of home care quality and the use of "brokerage" during times of change. The research utilised a qualitative post-structural approach to gather data about home care service provision through conducting semi-structured interviews of 10 Australian home care business leaders. What emerged in the discourse was how central to everyday practices was the need for business leaders to network and 'dance a political tango' to ensure quality in service provision. Illuminated was how the leaders pushed back against governmental and economic structures by using models of brokerage to compensate for economic and staffing deficiencies. This is essential for the ongoing improvement and performance of home care in the Australian social arena of caring for our most vulnerable consumers.

Working conditions, missed care and patient experience in home care nursing in Italy: An observational study.

INTRODUCTION: The aging of the population requires an appropriate knowledge of the type of care that needs to be provided to inform healthcare policies. In Italy, neither home care nursing, nor the patient experiences have ever been described. OBJECTIVES: To describe the characteristics of nurses and care recipients involved in home care. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in 18 Italian Regions. Between April and October 2023, data from nurses and patients involved in home care were collected through two surveys. Psychosocial conditions in workplaces, missed care, and care experiences were assessed using validated tools. Descriptive statistics and Pearson's correlations were performed. RESULTS: A total of 46 local healthcare units were included in this study, with a total of 2549 nurses and 4709 care recipients. Nurses (mean age 46.60; 79.48% female; 44.68% regional nursing diploma as the highest qualification) reported good working conditions (42.37; SD = 12.25; range = 0-100) and a high mean number of missed care activities (5.11; SD = 3.19; range 0-9). Most nurses (83.41%) reported high levels of job satisfaction, while 20.28% intended to leave their job. Patients (mean age 75.18; 57.57% female; 36.95% primary school), on the other hand, rated positively the care they had received (8.23; range = 0-10). CONCLUSIONS: Despite the perception of critical issues at work and some missed care, satisfaction in nurses and patients was high. These data constitute a preliminary snapshot of the studied phenomena, which will be investigated through more in-depth analyses.

Impact of a mobile application-based home care nursing program on patients' quality of life and family burden.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to identify the effectiveness of a mobile application-based home care nursing service in improving patient quality of life and healthy lifestyle and reducing the family burden. METHODS: This study was a clinical trial with a pre- and post-test control group design. The accessible population in this study was post-discharge patients from general hospitals in West Kalimantan and East Kalimantan, Indonesia, who required home care nursing. We allocated a selected sample of 40 people to the intervention group and 40 people to the control group using a randomized block design. We gave mobile application-based home care nursing to the intervention group and community health nursing care to the control group. This study was conducted in 10 months (January-October 2022). We measure the patient quality of life, healthy lifestyle, and family burden before and 3 months after the intervention. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the post-test quality of life between the two groups (p = 0.187), but there was a significant difference in the psychological (p = 0.014) and environmental health (p = 0.021) domain of quality of life. There was no significant difference in the post-test of a healthy lifestyle between the two groups (p = 0.083). There was a significant difference in the post-test family burden between the two groups (p = 0.015). CONCLUSION: Mobile Application-Based Home Care Nursing is effective in improving patient quality of life in the psychological and environmental health domains and reducing the family burden for post-discharge patients.

Alone yet accountable, the unseen buffers: A qualitative study of nurses' experiences working in home care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Norwegian society's resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in low mortality rates and moderate economic decline. The accessible primary healthcare system played a vital role in this, especially in the care of elderly and chronically ill patients. However, nurses in home care experienced emotional burdens, ethical dilemmas and limited access to protective equipment. These challenges were overshadowed by media coverage of hospital struggles, and municipal home care services were oddly absent from post-pandemic reports. This research therefore aimed to explore and describe how nurses experienced working in home care during the pandemic. METHODS: We designed a qualitative study and conducted semi-structured interviews with nine home care nurses from different municipalities in Southeast Norway. Systematic text condensation inspired by Malterud was employed for data analysis. RESULTS: Nurses' experiences were described through two categories: 'adapting approaches' and 'adapting work practices'. The results showed how nurses often felt alone while simultaneously shouldering a significant responsibility for patients facing a novel and unfamiliar illness. The pandemic necessitated treating patients in their own homes to minimise infection risks, intensifying the nurses' treatment responsibilities. Furthermore, limited access to medical expertise and physical separation from management due to remote work accentuated feelings of isolation and amplified the nurses' responsibility for patient care. Additionally, the nurses encountered frequent changes in work routines, demanding adaptability. CONCLUSION: This study underscores the significant role of home care nurses, who, despite feeling professionally isolated and unsupported, demonstrated impressive adaptability. They served as a crucial buffer in the healthcare system, ensuring vulnerable individuals received essential care. This highlights the importance of a robust primary healthcare system with a skilled nursing workforce that can work autonomously, shoulder responsibility, and make clinical decisions, even when medical expertise is less readily available. It also reminds us that healthcare preparedness depends on collaborative efforts across all sectors.

[Perceived changes in the workload of home care nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic: Results of an online survey]. / Wahrgenommene Veränderungen der Belastungssituation ambulant Pflegender während der COVID-19-Pandemie: Ergebnisse einer Online-Befragung.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic posed major challenges to the health care system, particularly to nursing. Intensive care was often the focus of attention. However, home care nursing was also confronted with drastic changes, while it is largely unknown how the work situation changed for employees as a result of the pandemic - also depending on the sponsorship of home care nursing services. METHODS: A nationwide online survey of home-care nurses was conducted in May and June 2022. The Intensification of Job Demands Scale (IDS) and an open question regarding changes in the work situation due to the pandemic were used among other instruments. RESULTS: More than two-thirds of the 976 home-care nurses surveyed agreed with the respective statements regarding work intensification (e.g., taking fewer breaks, doing work activities at the same time, not having enough time). Additional factors for psychological workload during the pandemic primarily fell within the scope of work organization (e.g., staff absences due to illness and quarantine, vaccination related leaves and terminations, additional workload due to handling protective clothing). Employees of privately run care services experienced fewer COVID-19-related changes than home care nurses employed by non-profit providers. CONCLUSION: In future crisis situations, good information management (e.g., uniform, consistent and comprehensible guidelines and recommendations for action) and ways to compensate for staff shortages should be created.

Nurses' challenges when supporting the family of patients with ALS in specialized palliative home care: A qualitative study.

PURPOSE: Being a family member to someone who has amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is demanding and often requires sacrificing a lot. Family members can experience fatigue, anxiety, guilt and need support. The aim was to explore registered nurses' (RNs') experiences of providing support to the families of patients with ALS within specialized palliative home care (SPHC). METHODS: A qualitative explorative design. Interviews were conducted with RNs (n = 11) from five SPHCs in Sweden and analysed using qualitative content analysis. RESULTS: The results emerged in the following categories:"To support in an increasingly difficult everyday life", based on the sub-categories: "Creating a trusting relationship", "Balancing between the needs of patients and their families", and "Sharing knowledge about dying to the families";"To support in emotionally challenging situations", based on the sub-categories: "Harbouring family members' difficult feelings", "Providing support even though the situation is unpleasant" and "Being able to give support by receiving confirmation and support from others". CONCLUSIONS: RNs working in SPHC have an important role in providing support in several ways to the families of patients with ALS, through facilitating their everyday life and giving emotional support when needed, based on the needs of both patients and the families.

Predictors and consequences of moral distress in home-care nursing: A cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND: Nurses frequently face situations in their daily practice that are ethically difficult to handle and can lead to moral distress. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the phenomenon of moral distress and describe its work-related predictors and individual consequences for home-care nurses in Germany. RESEARCH DESIGN: A cross-sectional design was employed. The moral distress scale and the COPSOQ III-questionnaire were used within the framework of an online survey conducted among home-care nurses in Germany. Frequency analyses, multiple linear and logistic regressions, and Rasch analyses were performed. PARTICIPANTS AND RESEARCH CONTEXT: The invitation to participate was sent to every German home-care service (n = 16,608). ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS: The study was approved by the Data Protection Office and Ethics Committee of the German Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. RESULTS: A total of 976 home-care nurses participated in this study. Job characteristics, such as high emotional demands, frequent work-life-conflicts, low influence at work, and low social support, were associated with higher disturbance caused by moral distress in home-care nurses. Organizational characteristics of home-care services, such as time margin with patients, predicted moral distress. High disturbance levels due to moral distress predicted higher burnout, worse state of health, and the intention to leave the job and the profession, but did not predict sickness absence. CONCLUSIONS: To prevent home-care nurses from experiencing severe consequences of moral distress, adequate interventions should be developed. Home-care services ought to consider family friendly shifts, provide social support, such as opportunities for exchange within the team, and facilitate coping with emotional demands. Sufficient time for patient care must be scheduled and short-term takeover of unknown tours should be prevented. There is a need to develop and evaluate additional interventions aimed at reducing moral distress, specifically in the home-care nursing sector.

Home care nurses' and managers' work environment during the Covid-19 pandemic: Increased workload, competing demands, and unsustainable trade-offs.

Little research exists on how home care nursing personnel have experienced the Covid-19 pandemic. This qualitative study explores the work environment related challenges nurses and managers in home care faced during the pandemic. We discuss these challenges in relation to the Demand-Control-Support Model and reflect on how the organizational dynamics associated with them can be understood using the competing pressures model. During the pandemic, home care nurses and managers experienced both an increased workload and psychosocial strain. For managers, the increased complexity of work was a major problem. We identify three key takeaways related to sustainable crisis management: 1) to support managers' ability to provide social support to their personnel, 2) to increase crisis communication preparedness, and 3) to apply a holistic perspective on protective gear use. We also conclude that the competing pressures model is useful when exploring the dynamics of the work environment in complex organizational contexts.

A Qualitative Evaluation of the Implementation of an Oral Care Program in Home Care Nursing.

An Oral Care Program (OCP) was implemented in home care nursing teams in a northern province of the Netherlands to improve the oral health and hygiene of older people who make use of formal home care in 2018-2019. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the experiences of the stakeholders involved (older people, home-care nurses and dental hygienists) and to report the experienced impact of OCP, with a qualitative approach. Three dental hygienists, nine home care nurses, and eight older people were interviewed with semi-structured interviews, which were audio recorded, transcribed and analyzed using thematic analysis. The codes derived were grouped into nine main themes. OCP was experienced as mostly positive by all stakeholders involved. The educational part lead to more awareness towards oral care, but should be repeated regularly. Personalized oral care plans for older people were experienced positively, however, obtaining oral care behavior changes appeared to be difficult. Collaboration between dental hygienists and home care nurses lead to a positive experience from both sides The method and intensity of collaboration varied between the teams. To provide better access to oral health care for older people in the community, a long term collaboration between home care nursing teams and dental care professionals in their working area should be established.

Case of bilateral hip joint Charcot arthropathy in a paediatric patient.

An adolescent girl came with swelling of both thighs with difficulty in walking for a few months. Based on clinical, and radiological evaluation and nerve conduction studies, she was diagnosed to be having bilateral hips Charcot's arthropathy due to hereditary sensory autonomic neuropathy type 4. Other common causes of Charcot arthropathy were ruled out. The patient was conservatively managed and parents were educated about preventive measures. Through this case report, we want to highlight the myriad number of manifestations and clinical presentations of a child presenting with hereditary sensory autonomic neuropathy type 4.

Home care nursing practice for older persons with heart failure living at home.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To enhance knowledge of how older people with heart failure, living at home, manage their illness with the support of their family caregivers and home care nursing services. BACKGROUND: Heart failure monitoring and self-care have been important means of reducing the serious impact of heart failure. Drawing on theories of practice as enacted and conceptualising service users and their family caregivers as active, the idea of attunement was used to explore how home care nurses work in supporting them. DESIGN: Ethnographic case study. METHOD: Data collection involved home visits and interviews (10 home care users, 10 caregivers, five home care team leaders). Data were field-notes and transcribed interviews. Themes were deductively developed from the findings, informed by the theoretical background, using content analysis. The COREQ checklist was used. FINDINGS: Three themes were developed from the data: (1) Practices of attunement in relations, (2) Becoming among difficulties and (3) Off track-difficult to attune around self-care. CONCLUSIONS: The findings reflect the complexity of heart failure monitoring at home, showing how, in addition to self-care measures, users are supported by an array of informal and formal care. The caregiving situation is shaped by relations among participants and involves making oneself available to the situation. We suggest a stance of attunement for home care nurses, which demands tact and calls for interest, engagement and openness. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Study findings caution against limiting heart failure monitoring to circumscribed tasks, instead calling for a holistic understanding of what may be helpful for users. Home care nurses need time to attune with users living with heart failure and their caregivers to prevent exacerbations and promote well-being. NO PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: Although patients were not formally involved in study design ethnography favours their voice.

Teamwork in home care nursing: A scoping literature review.

Due to an increased number of complex multi- and long-term ill patients, healthcare and nursing provided in patients' homes are expected to grow. Teamwork is important in order to provide effective and safe care. As care becomes more complex, the need for teamwork in home care nursing increases. However, the literature on teamwork in the patients' home environment is limited. The aim of this study is to describe the scope of the current literature on teamwork in home care nursing and outline needs for future research. Seven electronic databases were systematically searched and 798 articles were identified and screened. Seventy articles remained and were assessed for eligibility by two of the authors. Eight themes were identified among the 32 articles that met the inclusion criteria. Studies concerned with teamwork regarding isolated tasks/problems and specific teamwork characteristics were most common. Methods were predominantly qualitative. Multiple method approaches and ethnographic field studies were rare. Descriptions of the context were often lacking. The terms 'team' and 'teamwork' were inconsistently used and not always defined. However, it is apparent that teamwork is important and home care nurses play a crucial role in the team, acting as the link between professionals, the patient and their families. Future studies need to pay more attention to the context and be more explicit about how the terms team and teamwork are defined and used. More research is also needed regarding necessary team skills, effects of teamwork on the work environment and technology-mediated teamwork.

Evaluation of an Oral Care Program to Improve the Oral Health of Home-Dwelling Older People.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of the implementation of an Oral Care Program on home care nurses' attitudes and knowledge about oral health (care) and the impact on older people's oral health. A pre-post study, without a control group, was conducted. A preventive Oral Care Program (OCP) was designed, focusing on home care nurses and older people, in collaboration with dental hygienists. Implementation was measured with questionnaires at baseline and after 6 months for home care nurses; for older people, implementation was measured at baseline and after 3 months with the Oral Health Assessment Tool and a questionnaire about oral (self) care between January 2018 and September 2019. Although the study design has limitations, the oral health of older people improved significantly after 3 months and the OCP was most beneficial for people with full dentures. The OCP improved knowledge and attitude of home care nurses. The program fitted well with the daily work routines of home care nurses. Individual-centered care plans for older people, education of home care nurses and the expertise of the dental hygienists have added value in home care nursing. Future implementations should focus on older people with natural teeth.

What matters to older adults? Exploring person-centred care during and after transitions between hospital and home.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To explore person-centred care provided to a group of older adults (65+) by understanding their experiences of care received, their participation in care and what matters to them during and after the transition process between hospital and home. BACKGROUND: Although facilitating person-centred care (PCC) has gained increasing importance globally over the last few decades, its practical implementation has been challenging. This has caused difficulties in determining its core elements and best practices. Person-centred care aims to deliver healthcare services based on individuals' preferences. Several approaches have been developed to better implement person-centred care practices. The Norwegian transitional and follow-up model, 'Holistic Continuity of Patient Care', chooses the 'What Matters to You?' APPROACH: Other approaches include 'Shared Decision Making' and 'Continuity of Care'. DESIGN: This study employed a qualitative design. METHODS: Individual repeated interviews were conducted among eight participants. A hermeneutic exploratory research method was chosen. The COREQ checklist was followed. RESULTS: Three main themes related to person-centred care emerged: what matters in meetings with the individual healthcare worker, mobilising health-promoting capabilities and resources and what matters when being in the organisational healthcare system. CONCLUSION: To participate in their own health issues, older people need to be empowered and better informed about the importance and scope of person-centred care. 'What Matters to You?' is a good focus for the direction of care but can lead to a simplified understanding of individuals' preferences. Increased focus on how care recipients' capabilities and resources affect their responding is needed. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Ensuring that person-centred aspects are incorporated into the entire healthcare system requires better methods of engaging and empowering older adults in healthcare settings; more focus on PCC competence and skills of healthcare professionals as well as better integration of PCC practices into healthcare administration and policies.

Home care nursing for persons with dementia from a family caregivers' point of view: Predictors of utilisation in a rural setting in Austria.

The service utilisation of persons with dementia (PwD) and their caregivers is subject to lively debate. The reasons for non-utilisation are manifold and heterogeneous. Conceptual models and explanatory frameworks may help identify predictors of the usage of health services. Literature examining the utilisation of home care services for PwD is scarce. This study explored predictors of home care nursing utilisation of PwD and their informal caregivers in a rural setting, according to the Andersen Behavioural Model of Health Care Use. A mixed-methods study was conducted in a rural area of Austria. In using non-random multistage sampling, anonymous questionnaires were distributed to collect data on family caregivers of PwD. Data were analysed using sequential binary logistic regression to characterise home care service users. To reflect the complexity of the Andersen model, a regression tree model was used. In total, 107 family caregivers completed the survey. Predisposing factors for home care nursing utilisation were higher age of the caregiver, female gender of PwD and kinship of the PwD and caregiver. Disruptive behaviour and independence in activities of daily living of PwD were associated with need factors for service use. According to the Andersen model, the predisposing and need factors contributed most to the explanation of home care nursing utilisation. The enabling factors employment, education and income tend to predict service use. Our findings indicate that higher age of the family caregiver and female gender of PwD are the main predictors for utilisation of home care nursing in a rural setting. To improve utilisation, the advantages of professional care services should be promoted, and the awareness about the variety of services available should be increased. To ensure a better understanding of the barriers to accessing home care, PwD should more often be included in healthcare service research.

Professional agency vs consumer directed care workers: Outcomes in managed care.

Direct care workers are a major part of the long-term services and supports (LTSS) needed to address the health of individuals and accounted for $112 billion in United States spending in 2015. Direct care workers are hired within professional agency models (PAMs) or consumer-directed models (CDMs) where workers (including family) are contracted by the individual to obtain services. We sought to identify differences in cost and utilisation outcomes between PAM and CDM participants. Data were obtained from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Insurance Services Division from the participants enrolled in UPMC Community HealthChoices in Pennsylvania during 2018. A retrospective, observational cohort study design was performed using claims data. Utilisation outcomes were assessed using multivariate logistic regression and cost outcomes by linear regression. The 3,232 participants met the inclusion criteria. Of these, 69% (N = 2,217) were in a PAM, 23% (N = 752) were in a CDM, and 8% (N = 263) used a combination of services. PAM groups were older (mean 62.4 years vs 54.1 years), more likely to be women (69.0% vs 62.8%), and had more healthcare needs. Hospital utilisation was the same among groups. However, total cost was lower in CDM groups due to differences in LTSS costs between CDM and PAM services. Among dually eligible Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries receiving LTSS, there are significant differences in age, gender, race and health needs. While hospital utilisation was not different between groups, CDM groups had lower total costs of care compared to PAM. These findings have implications for families, policymakers and insurers in helping to govern community LTSS while supporting member autonomy.

Nurses' experiences of encounters in home care: a phenomenological hermeneutic study.

PURPOSE: nurses working in home care often encounter patients with multiple diagnoses in unpredictable environments. This may cause ethical and emotional challenges and influence nurses' daily work. The aim of this study was to illuminate the meaning of nurses' lived experiences of encountering patients in home care. METHODS: narrative interviews were conducted with 11 nurses. These interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim and analysed using a phenomenological hermeneutic approach. FINDINGS: the findings are presented under three main themes: (1)"Being receptive to the other" (with subthemes "Caring about the encounter," and "Establishing trusting relationships"). (2) "Need to handle Handling the unpredictable" (with subthemes "Being alone in the encounter" and "Being experienced and competent"). (3) "Managing frustration" (with subthemes "Feeling insufficient" and "Feeling restricted". Having overall nursing responsibility challenged the nurse's self-confidence in providing care trustfully. CONCLUSIONS: encountering patients in home care means relating to the other unconditionally, which aim to highlight patients' needs. Being a nurse in home care is both emotionally demanding and rewarding. Having the courage to face their own and the patients' vulnerabilities will entail the promotion of natural receptivity and responsiveness to patients' needs.

Managing Multiple Medications and Their Packaging for Older People in Home Care Nursing: An Interview Study.

Home care nurses assist older people in their daily living and well-being, including medication management. Medication management can be challenging for older people with functional constraints and several chronic conditions. This paper presents how home care nurses manage medications and their packaging for older people at their homes. This study followed an explorative qualitative research design, in which semi-structured interviews were conducted with home care nurses in Sweden (n = 14). The study revealed that home care nurses need to coordinate a multitude of interrelated tasks, with documentation being paramount. Regarding medication management, automated systems were preferred, as they reduce medication errors and facilitate dispensing of medications for each patient when compared with analogue systems still in use (i.e., dosing boxes), commonly used by older people. Importantly, the lack of a common journal system for updates on prescribed medication among health care providers and analogue communication still in place creates space for outdated prescription of medications for patients. There are opportunities for further investigation on how technology can help home care nurses in coordinating medication management tasks with other health care providers, and on receiving updates about medication intake by older patients when the nurse is not at their homes.

Infection prevention and control practice among home-care nursing agencies in Japan: Secondary analysis of a nationwide cross-sectional survey.

AIM: We describe the nationwide situation of infection prevention and control (IPC) practices among home-visit nursing agencies and compare them by agency size to explore whether these practices are associated with the occurrence of infection. METHODS: We conducted a secondary analysis using data from a cross-sectional nationwide survey inspecting patient safety and IPC practices among nationwide home-visit nursing agencies, from March to April 2020. Among 9978 agencies, 580 responded and 370 were incorporated in the analysis. The self-administered questionnaire inquired about the IPC policy and administrative structure, education and training, adherence to standard precautions, and employee health programs. We described the adherence to IPC practice at the agency level and compared them by agency size using chi-squared tests. Logistic regression analysis was performed to explore the associations between IPC practices and incidence of infection. RESULTS: Adherence to IPC practices ranged from 19.2% to 92.4% and varied according to agency size. Less than 20% of agencies had instituted a committee for IPC and strictly used disposable aprons when changing patients' diapers. Instituting a committee for IPC (odds ratio 2.19, 95% confidence interval 1.11-4.34, P < 0.05) and training staff for infection prevention (odds ratio 1.67, 95% confidence interval 1.02-2.72, P < 0.01) were significantly associated with the incidence of infection, after adjusting for covariates. CONCLUSIONS: There are challenges in establishing IPC policies and administrative structures and adhering to standard precautions. Well-organized agencies were found to be more likely to detect infections occurring over the past 3 months. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2021; 21: 913-918.

Adverse Events in Home-Care Nursing Agencies and Related Factors: A Nationwide Survey in Japan.

Despite the importance of patient safety in home-care nursing provided by licensed nurses in patients' homes, little is known about the nationwide incidence of adverse events in Japan. This article describes the incidence of adverse events among home-care nursing agencies in Japan and investigates the characteristics of agencies that were associated with adverse events. A cross-sectional nationwide self-administrative questionnaire survey was conducted in March 2020. The questionnaire included the number of adverse event occurrences in three months, the process of care for patient safety, and other agency characteristics. Of 9979 agencies, 580 questionnaires were returned and 400 were included in the analysis. The number of adverse events in each agency ranged from 0 to 47, and 26.5% of the agencies did not report any adverse event cases. The median occurrence of adverse events was three. In total, 1937 adverse events occurred over three months, of which pressure ulcers were the most frequent (80.5%). Adjusting for the number of patients in a month, the percentage of patients with care-need level 3 or higher was statistically significant. Adverse events occurring in home-care nursing agencies were rare and varied widely across agencies. The patients' higher care-need levels affected the higher number of adverse events in home-care nursing agencies.