Do follow-up home visits by military nurses of chronically ill medical patients reduce readmissions?

Abstract

The study included patients admitted three times or more. Patients were 45 years of age or older and lived within 25 miles of the hospital. Patients were randomly assigned to a control group and those that received home visits. Patients were visited by the RN within 7 days after discharge. Each patient had nine visits over the next 3 months. Seventy-five patients participated in this study. The average age of the sample was 66.12 +/- 16 years. There was an equal number of men and women in the two groups. The nurses made 130 home visits. During these visits, 38 interventions were accomplished. These interventions allowed the patients to remain at home. Prior to this study, the incidence of readmission for these patients was notable. This study showed that home visits with appropriate interventions by military staff nurses reduces the incidence of rehospitalization.