Patient education

[sunnysideRN]

Wondering if any of you have a system for what you teach and when you teach it.

For instance, I've heard of some nurses teaching safety measures on the first f/u visit after the SOC, then pain mgt, then the medications. Also heard of some nurses teaching on 1 medication and/or disease per visit until they are all covered. I'm trying to be more systematic about it because I feel like I just address things as they come up and I'd like to be more proactive.

My agency uses Kinnser and I feel like the pre-populated "progress to goals" don't help matters. It doesn't feel like a real care plan to me as so many of the items aren't relevant and there are many other things I liked to teach which aren't in there (though I could "free text" them if I had all the time in the world).

I'd like to print more educational handouts but after all my charting the last thing I have energy for is printing materials, plus I'm trying to be smart about out-of-pocket expenses spent on work. Currently, I use my phone to pull up information in the home (for example, side effects of such and such medication) and then I just discuss it with the patient. Is a discussion the best teaching method for elderly adults, I am not sure.

Any thoughts on anything related to how you teach your patients is appreciated :)

[Libby1987]

Does your agency provide stoplights?

[sunnysideRN]

No, never heard of it. Please share.

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

Every home care visit should have physical assessment, medication reconcilitation/eval med compliance, teaching 1-2 meds per visit for best retention along with education in disease process, skilled care needs: injections, wounds, foley, tube feeding, IV infusion etc.

"Stoplight" tools assist patients with monitoring and managing their chronic condition by listing various signs and symptoms into "green," "yellow," and "red" management zones.

From Institute for Healthcare Improvement.

The analogy of a stoplight can be useful in teaching patients about monitoring and managing their chronic condition. "Stoplight" tools divide various signs and symptoms (e.g., daily weight for chronic heart failure patients or blood glucose levels for diabetics) into "green," "yellow," and "red" management zones.

Green = stability and good control over the condition

Yellow = caution and suggests steps for regaining control

Red = a medical crisis that requires a provider's attentionStoplight (Red-Yellow-Green)

For each zone, the tool provides signs and symptoms and allows the health care provider to give specific instructions for managing the condition, including guidance on when to seek emergency medical assistance.

Tools were developed/diseminated by Home Health Quality Improvement organizations and are available for chronic disease management of patients Asthma, Congestive Heart Failure, Depression, Diabetes, HTN, Pain Management, Renal Failure, Urinary catheters and are available in multiple languages.

Free registration required at HHQI to access HHQI ZONE Tools

Multiple other conditions including blood thinners, Renal Failure, Hip Replacement, Sepsis at:

https://www.tmfqin.org/Resource-Center?fi=172&st=zone

See if your agency has these tools available. When I started in home care, had similar tool teach sheet original I enclosed in plastic sleeve -made 20 copies each and kept in accordion file in my car ---made copies in the office.

QIP-CHF-Program-2012-zone-tool.pdf

[sunnysideRN]

Thank you so much for enlightening me about "stoplight" tools! This is exactly the kind of systematic approach I've wanted to take with my patients but there's no way I could've created all that from scratch. I've registered and begun printing the handouts. So glad there's an organization focused on HH quality. Very cool, thanks again!

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

Glad we could help you. :)