Nursing care of dependent aged persons: home, hospital and continuing care

Abstract

The objective was to identify and compare the nursing care provided to dependent aged patients within the settings of primary, secondary, and rehabilitative care, and identify the aspects that facilitate or hamper the delivery of care. This qualitative study was performed in healthcare services, using photovoice, which uses photography and voice recording for data collection. The participants were twelve nurses from the three referred contexts, aged between 22 and 43 years, ten of whom were women. Results suggest that the promotion of quality nursing care of dependent aged persons involves more work and decisions made by a multidisciplinary team. The main obstacles are the scarcity of resources and disorganization. The participants emphasize the importance of involvement by the family, who are considered to be part of the care team. In conclusion, the three referred contexts tend to converge in terms of the needs identified for the promotion of quality care.

Descriptors: Nursing Care; Health of the Elderly; Admitting Department, Hospital; Primary Health Care; Halfway Houses.