Introduction: Homecare (HC) is a service offering home medical and nursing care to the patient at home in equal quantity and quality as in the hospital. The aim of the article is to describe the changes in the HC of preterm and full-term low-birth-weight infants in our department from 2002-2014.
Material and methods: The HC database is revised. The characteristics of the newborns and the social characteristics of the family in three consecutive time periods are analysed. A satisfaction survey of parents is also presented.
Results: The main changes in HC include a decrease in the weight at discharge (from 1880g in the 2002-2006 period to 1850g in the 2011-2014 period; P=.006) and at the end of HC (from 2187g to 2163g; P=.001), an increase in the duration of HC (from 10 to 11 days; P=.007) and a lower incidence of new hospitalization (from 3.4% to 1.3%; P=.019) The social characteristics of the family show a higher maternal age with more previous alive children, a family context better suited with a more appropriate housing, and an increase in exclusive breastfeeding at hospital discharge (from 25.5% to 49.0%; P<.001). The overall assessment of the program is ≥7/10 in 98.8% of responses.
Conclusions: The results of the HC of preterm and low-birth-weight infants have improved over time, saving approximately 10-11 days of hospitalisation, and without compromising the quality of care or reducing family satisfaction.
Keywords: Alta precoz; Asistencia domiciliaria; Atención a domicilio; Cuidados domiciliarios; Domiciliary nursing care; Early discharge; Home healthcare; Homecare; Low birth weight newborn; Preterm infant; Recién nacido de bajo peso; Recién nacido prematuro.
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