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What do public health nurses really do during prenatal home appointments?
1Department of Nursing, College of St. Benedict, St. Joseph, Minnesota 45374, USA.
Public Health Nursing (Boston, Mass.)
|January 24, 1998
Summary
Public health nurses provide essential home-based care for high-risk prenatal clients. Key nursing interventions were identified, but care plans and documentation showed weak alignment with actual nursing activities.
Area of Science:
- Nursing
- Public Health
- Maternal Health
Background:
- Home-based care is crucial for high-risk prenatal clients.
- Understanding nursing interventions in this setting is vital for quality improvement.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe nursing interventions used by public health nurses in home-based prenatal care.
- To examine the alignment between planned, actual, and documented nursing interventions.
Main Methods:
- Qualitative analysis of 14 audiotaped home visits by 9 public health nurses.
- Coding of transcribed interactions using the Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC).
Main Results:
- Seven core interventions comprised approximately 83% of observed nursing care.
- Weak correlations were found between planned, actual, and documented nursing interventions.
Conclusions:
- Identified key nursing interventions in home-based prenatal care.
- Highlighted discrepancies between care plans, practice, and documentation, suggesting areas for improvement in practice, education, and research.