Development of an outpatient nursing support tool for finding patterns of symptoms and signs of patients with chronic heart failure

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25670945
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Clinical nursing
• Research Institution: Kansai Medical University (2016); Osaka University (2013-2015)
• Principal Investigator: SETO Natsuko 関西医科大学, 医学部, 教授 (60512069)
• Research Collaborator: TANIGUCHI Chinatsu 武庫川女子大学, 看護学部, 助教 (20757215)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 慢性心不全 / 外来看護支援

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Participants were three experienced home-visit chronic heart failure nurses who completed one-to-one interviews，and data were analyzed. Six themes were identified that reflected detection of disease exacerbation and nursing support to prevent disease progression: difficulty of judging deterioration in patients with comorbidities; ascertaining conditions needing immediate intervention; detection of illness progression from changes in the patient’s appearance; inferring instability in physical condition from patients’ concerns and questions; arranging to ensure continued management of the patient post-discharge; and instructing patients to ensure they never return to their old habits. The findings indicate that nurses experience challenges in detecting illness progression and judging when outpatient or hospital care is needed. However, nurses use a range of signs and symptoms to determine deterioration, such as subtle changes in patients’appearance and behavior.

Free Research Field

臨床看護学