Prevalence, Defining Characteristics, and Related Factors of the Nursing Diagnosis of Anxiety in Hospitalized Medical-Surgical Patients

Standardized Nursing Diagnoses in a Surgical Hospital Setting: A Retrospective Study Based on Electronic Health Data

Introduction

In electronic health records (EHRs), standardized nursing terminologies (SNTs), such as nursing diagnoses (NDs), are needed to demonstrate the impact of nursing care on patient outcomes. Unfortunately, the use of NDs is not common in clinical practice, especially in surgical settings, and is rarely included in EHRs.

Objectives

The aim of the study was to describe the prevalence and trend of NDs in a hospital surgical setting by also analyzing the relationship between NDs and hospital outcomes.

Methods

A retrospective study was conducted. All adult inpatients consecutively admitted to one of the 15 surgical inpatient units of an Italian university hospital across 1 year were included. Data, including the Professional Assessment Instrument and the Hospital Discharge Register, were collected retrospectively from the hospital's EHRs.

Results

The sample included 5,027 surgical inpatients. There was a mean of 6.3 ± 4.3 NDs per patient. The average distribution of NDs showed a stable trend throughout the year. The most representative NANDA-I ND domain was safety/protection. The total number of NDs on admission was significantly higher for patient whose length of stay was longer. A statistically significant correlation was observed between the number of NDs on admission and the number of intra-hospital patient transfers. Additionally, the mean number of NDs on admission was higher for patients who were later transferred to an intensive care unit compared to those who were not transferred.

Conclusion

NDs represent the key to understanding the contribution of nurses in the surgical setting. NDs collected upon admission can represent a prognostic factor related to the hospital's key outcomes.

Functional independence of elderly patients who fell: a follow-up study

OBJECTIVE

to evaluate, in emergency hospital service and at home, the functional independence of elderly people who fell.

METHOD

longitudinal study with 151 elderly. Functional Independence Measure (FIM) was used. Statistical tests were performed with univariate and bivariate analysis.

RESULTS

mean of total FIM value in the hospital was 70.4; and at home 84.3 (p <0.001). Independence was lower in the motor domain, in "self-care", "mobility" and "locomotion" dimensions, in the two evaluations (p <0.001). Dependence reduced from 97.3% elderly in the hospital to 82.8% at home (p <0.001). There was a negative correlation between total FIM and age, number of medications, number of diseases and hospitalization time in both evaluations. Femoral and hip fractures were associated with lower total FIM values (p <0.001).

CONCLUSION

the elderly had less independence in the hospital compared to at home, with greater impairment in the motor domain and "self-care", "mobility" and "locomotion" dimensions, in the two moments evaluated.