A Qualitative Study of Older Patients’ and Family Caregivers’ Perspectives of Transitional Care From Hospital to Home

Abstract

Background and PurposeThe need for high-quality long-term healthcare services is increasing across the globe as the population ages. Strategies for improving transitional care from hospital to home are needed. This study aimed to explore the perspectives of patients aged 65 years and over and their family caregivers transitioning from hospital to home in an urban area of Turkey.MethodsThematic analysis of in-depth semi-structured interviews was conducted with older patients (n = 14), with at least one chronic disease and admitted to the hospital for a minimum of 3 days, and family caregivers (n = 11) who voluntarily participated.ResultsMain themes were “confused feelings of safety and stress”; “worried about being left alone”; and “disrupted healthcare journey.” The proactive rehabilitation model was used to elaborate on the study findings and interpret the perspectives and experiences of older patients and their family caregivers, which can be used for improving the quality of care after discharge from hospital.Implications for PracticeA high-quality transitional care program requires taking care of the feeling of safety in older patients and their family caregivers by the multidisciplinary team and their enhanced involvement in care initiatives after hospital discharge.

Typology of Family Support in Home Care for Iranian Older People: A Qualitative Study

“…In Iran, female family caregivers have greater acceptance due to dominant traditions and cultural beliefs in the country [64]. The greater involvement of female family members in caregiving to older people is common both in Eastern and Western cultures [34,59,65,66]. It has been stated that female family caregivers spend more time in the provision of personal-care tasks than male caregivers.…”

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“…The barriers have been shown to be age-related, including physical and mental problems, and personal, such as low literacy skills, limited access to technology, negative attitudes towards technology, technological barriers [ 59 ], limited interest in technology, and unfamiliarity with technology [ 78 ]. Moreover, some older people are unable to use technology because electronic devices are not age-appropriate and their user manuals are complex and difficult to understand [ 59 ]. All these findings highlight the necessity of taking age-related considerations into account when designing electronic devices for older people [ 79 ].…”

Needs Assessment of Safe Medicines Management for Older People With Cognitive Disorders in Home Care: An Integrative Systematic Review

“…Moreover, a supportive and professional family caregiver-healthcare relationship with an emphasis on considering family caregivers' concerns, their education, and empowerment to safely perform the medication process was needed. The accepted perspective is that older people with cognitive impairment living in the community need coordinated and flexible care process (60)(61)(62)). An early integration of holistic palliative care approaches that encompass medicines management initiatives into home care should be included from the beginning of the illness (63,64).…”