Objective：To identify factors associated with depression in elderly people living alone who have a drinking habit.

Method：Elderly persons aged 65 years or older and living alone who were registered with a monitoring-type Internet survey company were included in the study. In addition, the eligibility requirements were as follows: drinking three or more times a week and drinking one or more drinks per drink. Multiple regression analysis was conducted using the following variables as independent variables: participants' background, including gender and years of living alone; AUDIT, a screening test for drinking problems; self-esteem scale; LSNS-6, a measure of social isolation in the elderly; and GDS-15, a measure of depression in the elderly.

Results：Participants in this study were more likely to be depressed, problem drinkers, and socially isolated; the GDS-15 was associated with AUDIT, the Self-Esteem Scale, and the LSNS-6.

Conclusion：In order to prevent depression among elderly persons living alone, support for sobriety, encouragement to increase self-esteem, and support for building social connections are effective. With these perspectives, outreach support is expected to lead to early detection and response to these problems.

Purpose：To clarify the spiritual needs of middle-aged female clients receiving end-of-life home care nursing and gather ideas for home-based spiritual care.

Method：We conducted a semi-structured interview of three middle-aged female clients receiving end-of-life home care nursing. Their responses were analyzed qualitatively and descriptively.

Results：The spiritual needs of the middle-aged female clients receiving end-of-life care at home comprised the following six categories: “I want to live,” “I want to understand on my own the meaning of my life,” “I want to be proud of my happy experiences in my hometown and child rearing, as well as in work and daily life,” “I want to feel the presence of my family at home and protect their lives and happiness,” “I want to lead a normal life comfortably right now, right here,” and “I wish that there would be a society that is comfortable to live in and values interpersonal relationships.”

Conclusion： The spiritual needs of the middle-aged female clients receiving end-of-life care at home included a strong desire to live, acknowledgment of their fate as they approach their final moment while seeking the time and place to understand the meaning of their lives, a strong desire to protect the lives and happiness of family members at home, a desire to lead a normal life, and a wish for happiness for people in society. The importance of adopting these needs in home-based spiritual care is suggested.

Objective：This study aimed to examine the status of and issues faced by home-visiting nurses who care for children with severe motor and intellectual disabilities, and encourage their families to use respite care.

Methods：An anonymous self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted with 600 facilities randomly selected from a nationwide database of home-visit nursing stations providing care to disabled individuals under the age of 19 years.

Results：The number of valid responses obtained was 143 (response rate, 28.5%; valid response rate, 83.6%). More than 95% of home-visiting nurses assessed the need for respite care, while 65.9% had specific plans to support their assigned families. The specific planning was related to the presence or absence of people who could consult about care management. Regarding issues related to care management, the highest percentage of respondents reported an existing shortage of respite care facilities.

Conclusion：The results suggest that a majority of home-visiting nurses are responsible for care management to help clients and their families have access to respite care, which requires medical knowledge and continuous assessment. The results also highlight needs for specialists who can provide professional care management and consult about care management.

Purpose：Comprehensive community care system （CCCS） for older people is important for improving the quality of life of the elderly at home. CCCS is based the concept of integrated care, which is required coordination between nurses and care workers. However, the components including outcomes of integrated care for elderly with dementia at home are not fully investigated.

Methods：A systematic scoping review was conducted using electronic databases. The following keywords were used: home care nursing; dementia; and integrated care. The criteria for selecting literature were as follows: 1） research on dementia care at home; 2） research targeting collaboration between nurses and care workers; and 3） clinical research.

Results：Seventeen papers （11 English and 6 Japanese papers） met the selection criteria. The quality of each paper was evaluated and fifteen papers were resulted in being at risk of bias. From the English papers which were all intervention studies, the following three components were identified: relationship with care providers; providing integrated care; remote support programs. Six Japanese papers were observational studies, and two components of comprehensive community care system were identified: current status and issues of care provision; and practice of care by multidisciplinary collaboration.

Conclusion：With reference to the components of the integrated care for the elderly with dementia, it is necessary to continuously improve the quality of clinical practice based on the collaboration between nurses and care workers. Also, the effects and outcome evaluations of the integrated care intervention should be examined in the future.