NURSE CAREGIVERS' ATTITUDES TOWARD AND PERCEPTIONS OF THE HEALTH STATUS AND TREATMENT NEEDS OF MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY IMPAIRED GERIATRIC PATIENTS (MENTALLY IMPAIRED, TREATMENT ORIENTATION).
Contributors: Kent State University.
Published: 1990
Number of pages: 126
Subjects: Psychology, Clinical.; Gerontology.; Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: The significant increase in human life expectancy has increased the burden on long-term care facilities traditionally responsible for managing the chronically-ill geriatric patient. Due to this increased demand for patient care, an understanding of the attitudes and perceptions of professional nurse caregivers toward the health status and treatment needs of different types of older nursing home patients would expand current health care planning and enhance optimal service delivery. One hundred and eleven (111) licensed nursing personnel from twenty nursing homes in Oregon and Washington were asked to indicate their attitudes toward and perceptions of the health status and treatment needs of a mentally or physically impaired older patient. In addition, nurse caregivers' reported their feelings toward and preferences for working with either type of patient. The main variable of interest was patient symptomatology and its relationship to nurse caregivers' treatment orientation (rehabilitation vs. custodial) and years of experience working with geriatric patients. While significant main effects for diagnosis, treatment orientation, and years of experience were found, no interactive effects of diagnosis X treatment orientation or diagnosis X years of experience were obtained. Main effects for patient diagnosis were found on measures of attitude toward the patient, perception of patient health status, and patient treatment needs. Generally, the mentally impaired patient was evaluated more negatively and supported more extensively (both medically and psychosocially) than the physically disabled patient. Findings suggest that current nurse caregivers tend to support more of a rehabilitation orientation toward patient care than expected and are clearly influenced by patient diagnosis and symptomatology in the development of their personal attitudes toward and perceptions of the needs of their geriatric patients.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-12, Section: B, page: 6104.

Thesis (PH.D.)--KENT STATE UNIVERSITY, 1990.

School code: 0101.