Abstract
This study investigated the inclinations of Japanese families concerning whether or not their hospitalized elderly relatives would be cared for at home upon discharge. Questionnaires (N=561) were completed during the hospitalization and again two years later. The mean age of patients was 79.0 years, and most of the female participants were above the age of 75.0f the families, 37.8% intended to utilize home nursing. Factors which were associated with a family's inclination to choose home nursing included : hospitalization experiences and duration of previous hospitalizations, frequency of welfare service utilization, availability of staircases in the home, degree of the patient's dementia, and the frequency of the family's visitations with the patient. A follow-up survey after two years showed that 5.7% of the patients had left the hospital to live at home. Factors which predicted leaving the hospital included : hospitalization of under 6 months, the family's intentions regarding home nursing, and judgement by doctors and nurses that home nursing was advisable. These longitudinal findings indicate that factors which predict the choice of home nursing are similar to the factors which predict hospital discharge. It is necessary to provide advise and support to families so that they can make free and informed choices concerning home nursing.
