Journal of professional nursing : official journal of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing
-
Discharge planning is an urgently needed nursing intervention. The purpose of this article is to investigate the importance of patient and family preferences and participation for discharge planning and to describe the pilot testing of an instrument to measure patient preferences for discharge planning. The results identified a lack of congruence between patients' and caregivers' preferences, suggesting the need to assess both patients' and families' preferences early and incorporate this in discharge planning that begins at admission to a hospital. The instrument, Patient Participation Preferences Assessment (PPPA), is shown to be a useful, reliable, and valid instrument that can be used in conjunction with the companion instrument, Family Preferences Assessment (FPA), to assist nurses with comprehensive discharge planning for greater effectiveness.
-
This article describes the conceptualization and implementation of an academic-service partnership for a baccalaureate nursing program. The partnership began its fifth year in the fall of 2002; 107 students have entered the partnership since its inception. ⋯ Students in the partnership have a unique opportunity for learning the art and science of nursing in a complex, integrated health care system with a strong emphasis on quality of environment, providers, and care delivery. A longitudinal program evaluation is underway, based on an American Association of Colleges of Nursing publication, the vision and goals of the School of Nursing, and the construct of organizational socialization.