Nursing: Returning Home

Good nursing is necessary, not only in hospitals, but also after returning home, especially for the elderly. A Care Transition Concept has been presented at the MEDICA Healthcare Forum. 21/11/2009

© Messe Düsseldorf 2009

Michael Scheufele, manager for care transition at Bethesda Hospital Stuttgart, has been working on the basis of the Care Transition Concept since 2005. The concept is relatively unknown in Germany so far. When a patient leaves the hospital, Scheufele and his assistant talk to him in order to find out, what has to be done. They take care of all necessities, for example home care or physiotherapy.

"It is also important to check the patients’ situation after they have returned home. Usually we contact our patients within seven days after leaving the hospital", explains Scheufele. He checks whether the patient is satisfied or not. Making sure that everything goes to plan, both the care providers and the family physician receive additionally to the hospital physician´s letter a special care transition sheet listing all necessary measures and results.

Consulting, communication and documentation takes about an hour per patient. However, consulting only takes up a third of that time. "The administrative burden is too high. We are still in the early stages of development”, says Scheufele, who is nevertheless positive about the concept.

Nadine Lormis
MEDICA.de