Other Titles
PechaKucha Presentation
Abstract
Background: Hospital discharge represents a critical transition in care, particularly for individuals without caregiving support. Patients who identify as having “no one to help” face heightened vulnerability to complications and rehospitalization. Understanding how nurses can identify and address these gaps is essential to reducing post-discharge complications and readmissions.
Purpose: To explore from the patient perspective how nurses can effectively prepare patients, who have no identified caregivers, for discharge home.
Methods: A qualitative descriptive design was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 adults recently discharged from a large metropolitan hospital in the western United States who reported having no one to assist them after discharge. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using deductive coding based on existing literature and interview guide, which were refined into a codebook through weekly team consensus. New codes were added as they emerged during coding. Directed content analysis was applied to identify themes related to patient experiences and the nursing role in preparing unsupported individuals for discharge.
Results: Participants identified the critical areas of managing medications, treatments, and wound care as essential for successful discharge without a caregiver. While written instructions were helpful, comprehension varied. Additionally, participants highlighted the financial limitations they experienced, which often delayed access to medications, professional assistance, or transportation. Transportation challenges were common, with some patients relying on ride-share services or community options, while others missed follow-up appointments entirely. Across interviews, participants emphasized that well-organized, easy-to-understand written discharge instructions enhanced confidence and independence.
Conclusion: Nurses are pivotal in preparing patients without caregivers for a safe transition home. These findings point to the vital role of nurses in ensuring that discharge plans for unsupported patients address practical, financial, and educational needs comprehensively. Comprehensive discharge planning must extend beyond standard instructions to include medication education, treatment reinforcement, financial assessment, and coordination of transportation and follow-up care. Providing individualized, clearly communicated discharge education helps patients manage independently, preventing complications.
Notes
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References:
Bobay, K. L., Weiss, M. E., Oswald, D., & Yakusheva, O. (2018). Validation of the registered nurse assessment of readiness for hospital discharge scale. Nursing Research, 67(4), 305-313. https://doi.org/10.1097/nnr.0000000000000293
Manges, K. A., Wallace, A. S., Groves, P. S., Schapira, M. M., & Burke, R. E. (2021). Ready to go home? Assessment of shared mental models of the patient and discharging team regarding readiness for hospital discharge. Journal of Hospital Medicine 16(6), 326-332. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.12788/jhm.3464
van Son, I., Guicherit, O. R., & Lombarts, A. (2024). ‘Help, I may have to go home…’ Leaving the hospital not too early and not too late: Optimising the discharge process. Journal of Health Management, 26(1), 92-101. https://doi.org/10.1177/09720634231222984
Victor, C. R. (2024). The use of services by the elderly three and twelve months after discharge from hospital. In Gerontology (pp. 130-145). Routledge.
Weiss, M. E., Yakusheva, O., Bobay, K. L., Costa, L., Hughes, R. G., Nuccio, S., Hamilton, M., Bahr, S., Siclovan, D., & Bang, J. (2019). Effect of implementing discharge readiness assessment in adult medical-surgical units on 30-day return to hospital: The READI randomized clinical trial. JAMA Netw Open, 2(1), e187387. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.7387
Sigma Membership
Iota Iota
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Descriptive/Correlational
Research Approach
Qualitative Research
Keywords:
Health Equity or Social Determinants of Health, Interprofessional, Interdisciplinary, Patient Discharge, Postoperative Complications, Readmission
Recommended Citation
Platt, Christine Rae; Bristol, Alycia; Wilkerson, Hannah; Vega, Susy; Long, DeeDee; Elmore, Catherine; and Wallace, Andrea, "Preparing Patients Without Caregivers: Nursing Strategies for Safe Discharge to Home" (2026). International Nursing Research Congress (INRC). 92.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/inrc/2026/presentations_2026/92
Conference Name
37th International Nursing Research Congress
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Conference Year
2026
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-07-29
Funder
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
Preparing Patients Without Caregivers: Nursing Strategies for Safe Discharge to Home
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Background: Hospital discharge represents a critical transition in care, particularly for individuals without caregiving support. Patients who identify as having “no one to help” face heightened vulnerability to complications and rehospitalization. Understanding how nurses can identify and address these gaps is essential to reducing post-discharge complications and readmissions.
Purpose: To explore from the patient perspective how nurses can effectively prepare patients, who have no identified caregivers, for discharge home.
Methods: A qualitative descriptive design was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 adults recently discharged from a large metropolitan hospital in the western United States who reported having no one to assist them after discharge. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using deductive coding based on existing literature and interview guide, which were refined into a codebook through weekly team consensus. New codes were added as they emerged during coding. Directed content analysis was applied to identify themes related to patient experiences and the nursing role in preparing unsupported individuals for discharge.
Results: Participants identified the critical areas of managing medications, treatments, and wound care as essential for successful discharge without a caregiver. While written instructions were helpful, comprehension varied. Additionally, participants highlighted the financial limitations they experienced, which often delayed access to medications, professional assistance, or transportation. Transportation challenges were common, with some patients relying on ride-share services or community options, while others missed follow-up appointments entirely. Across interviews, participants emphasized that well-organized, easy-to-understand written discharge instructions enhanced confidence and independence.
Conclusion: Nurses are pivotal in preparing patients without caregivers for a safe transition home. These findings point to the vital role of nurses in ensuring that discharge plans for unsupported patients address practical, financial, and educational needs comprehensively. Comprehensive discharge planning must extend beyond standard instructions to include medication education, treatment reinforcement, financial assessment, and coordination of transportation and follow-up care. Providing individualized, clearly communicated discharge education helps patients manage independently, preventing complications.
Description
This qualitative descriptive study examined how patients without identified caregivers attempted to navigate post hospital discharge needs and how nurses can prepare patients without caregivers for discharge. Findings emphasize the importance of nursing identifying that patients lack a formal support system, assessment and intervention in medication management, treatment adherence, financial planning, and transportation.