Open Access Kent State (OAKS)

By providing quality primary care in the home setting, nurse practitioners can treat homebound patients effectively and decrease the number of hospitalizations, 30-day readmissions, and emergency department visits. Forty patients with a diagnosis of Class III or IV heart failure who were homebound were chosen for this project. The project manager, an Adult-Gerontological nurse practitioner, made home visits to these patients on a monthly and as-needed basis throughout the 3-month project. The rate of hospital admissions, emergency department visits, and 30-day readmissions was reduced by 64%, 85%, and 95%, respectively. Patients were assessed using the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire (Green et al., 2000) at the initial visit and at 3 months. The scoring for physical functionality, symptom frequency, and quality of life were improved by 44%, 40%, and 54%, respectively.