Patients’ opinion about community nursing services provided at home

The research aimed to assess patients’ opinion about community nursing services provided at home. Methodology applied in the investigation. The research used quantitative methods. A survey was carried out at a Family Health Clinic in Kaunas district. 131 subjects attending the clinic participated in the research and answered a questionnaire. The results of the study were statistically analyzed using software SPSS 17.0 for Windows package. Results: In most cases the patients indicated that their health state was good or satisfactory. Approximately one third of the patients were disabled and more than half of them possessed the maximum work capacity. 31,3% of the subjects stated that they face difficulties with the arrival to the clinic. The most common causes were as following: long lines at doctor’s office (39%), a weak health (22%) and difficulties to climb the stairs (22%). It was determined that most of the patients were generally nursed by family members (100%) and only one fourth - by community nurses. Moreover, a doctor usually provided medical services at home and one third of the subjects did not invite any medical officers to their homes. The research revealed that only 12,2% of the subjects had used the community nursing services during the past two years. They received the following services: pulse rate measurement, blood sampling tests, drug monitoring and communication. The provided services were rated as very good and good. The patients commended the quality of the provided services. It was noticed that the patients’ subjective assessment of their health state did not have any relation with their ability/disability (p > 0,05) and the assessment of the community nurse’s provided services (p > 0,05). However, the research determined a statistically reliable relation (p < 0,001), which shows that the more the patients assessed their health condition as poor, the more often they applied for community nursing services. Nevertheless, there was a correlation (p < 0,05) between patient’s work capacity and their need for nursing services. It was also determined that the patients who had acquired higher education used to evaluate nursing services better (p < 0,001). Finally, the research revealed that the higher the patients evaluated nurse’s communication skills, the better they evaluated the provided nursing services. Results. It was determined that only 12,2% of the subjects had used community nursing services at home during the past two years. They usually receive the following services: pulse rate measurement, blood sampling tests, drug monitoring and communication. All the subjects are satisfied or partly satisfied with the community nursing services provided at home. The research revealed that the higher the patients evaluate nurse’s communication skills, the better they evaluate the provided nursing services. The more the patients assess their health condition as poor, the more often they apply for community nursing services, as well as, the lower the patients’ work capacity is, the more often they need nursing services. Practical recommendations. It is recommended to increase the availability of nursing services at home. This can be achieved by increasing the budget for medical institutions and nursing services at home additional funding, as well as by establishing additional nursing posts. With the respect to a better assessment of nursing services at home and meeting patients’ requirements, it is recommended to train community nurses for the better performance of appropriate medical procedures and to develop their communicative skills, positive attitude and respect to a patient