Nursing Home Visit

Purposes

1. Care for the sick, the postpartum mother, and her newborn, and teach a responsible family member to take over the ongoing care.
2. Assess the patient's and family's living conditions and health practices so your teaching fits their situation.
3. Teach prevention and control of disease.
4. Build a working relationship between the health agency and the public to promote health.
5. Use the inter-referral system and promote use of community services.

Principles

Every home visit follows these principles:

1. The visit must have a clear purpose or objective.
2. Plan using all available information about the patient and family, including the family record.
3. Give priority to the essential needs of the individual and family.
4. Involve the individual and family in planning and delivering care.
5. Keep the plan flexible.

Guidelines

Set the frequency of home visits against these factors:

1. The physical, psychological, and educational needs of the individual and family.
2. The family's acceptance of the services, their interest, and their willingness to cooperate.
3. Agency policy and the emphasis given to specific health programs.
4. Other health agencies and the number of personnel already involved with the family.
5. Evaluation of past services and how the family uses the nursing services offered.
6. The family's ability to recognize its own needs, its knowledge of available resources, and its ability to use them.

Steps

1. Greet the patient and introduce yourself.
2. State the purpose of the visit.
3. Observe the patient and determine the health needs.
4. Set the bag in a convenient place and perform the bag technique.
5. Deliver the nursing care needed and give health teaching.
6. Record all important data, observations, and care rendered.
7. Set the appointment for a return visit.

Home visiting is an established public health strategy. Federal evidence-based models delivered through the Health Resources and Services Administration's Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program pair trained home visitors with families to improve maternal and child health, and the CDC reports these voluntary programs improve maternal health, child development, and school readiness.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the purpose of a nursing home visit? A home visit lets the nurse assess the home and family situation in person, deliver direct care, teach a responsible family member to continue that care, and connect the family to community services through the referral system.

What is the difference between a home visit and a clinic visit? A home visit brings care to the family's own environment, so the nurse sees living conditions and health practices firsthand and can tailor teaching to what the family actually has and does. A clinic visit happens on the agency's terms in a controlled setting.

How often should home visits be scheduled? Frequency depends on the family's physical, psychological, and educational needs, their willingness to cooperate, agency policy, how many other agencies are already involved, and how well the family uses the services offered.

What is the bag technique in a home visit? The bag technique is the standardized way a nurse sets up and uses the home visit bag to keep supplies clean and prevent spreading infection between households. It is performed after stating the purpose of the visit and observing the patient.

Are home visiting programs supported by evidence? Yes. Federally funded models under the MIECHV Program have met Department of Health and Human Services criteria for evidence of effectiveness, and the CDC links these voluntary programs to better maternal and child health outcomes.

What are the main steps of a home visit? Greet the patient and introduce yourself, state the purpose, observe and determine health needs, perform the bag technique, deliver care and health teaching, record the data and care given, then set the return appointment.