Identifying structure and aspects that 'continuing nursing care' used in discharge support from hospital to home care in Japan

• Published in: International journal of nursing practice Vol. 19; no. S2; pp. 50 - 58
• Main Authors: Nagae, Hiroko, Tanigaki, Shizuko, Okada, Mari, Katayama, Yoko, Norikoshi, Chie, Nishina, Yuko, Sakai, Masako
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Australia Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.04.2013; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Aged; Case management; continuing nursing care; Continuity of Patient Care; Discharge; discharge support; elderly and their family; Home Care Services; Home health care; Hospitals; Humans; Japan; Lifestyle; Nursing; Nursing care; Nursing Process; Patient Discharge; Patient Transfer; Professional practices; quality of life; Social support; Teams; Japan
• ISSN: 1322-7114; 1440-172X
• DOI: 10.1111/ijn.12044

This study investigated nursing practice in continuing nursing care with the aim of identifying the key factors in nursing practice during discharge support. A literature review of papers published in Japanese in 2000 and 2011 was conducted using ‘case management’, ‘care management’, ‘continuing nursing care’, ‘discharge support’, ‘discharge planning’ and ‘elderly person’ as key words. An analysis of 54 papers revealed the following five aspects of continuing nursing care: (i) a cyclical approach aimed at realising the lifestyle desired by the person concerned; (ii) management of medical conditions for lifestyle stability; (iii) support for the patient as someone who can live independently; (iv) support to raise the ability of families to care for themselves; and (v) team approach to achieve implementation of patient‐centred care. Understanding these aspects allows nurses to recreate the lifestyle of patients and families and facilitate the implementation of a systematic team approach.