Patient information at discharge—A study of a combined approach

ObjectiveTo describe patients’ perceptions of a new information procedure related to going home after urological surgery. This procedure, developed in an action research project, included a discharge talk with the nurse and an information booklet for the patients to keep.MethodsA convenience sample of 99 patients responded to a survey sent home 1 week after discharge (return 78.6%). The Patient Information and Nurse Interaction Scale (PINI) was used for data collection.ResultsThe sample were mostly male (81%), older (mean 71.9 years), and hospitalised on average less than 4 days. Patients who got the booklet had significantly more favourable perceptions on information received (p < 0.05) on 11 of 21 items, and 91% said they would not have managed very well at home without it.ConclusionThe patients who received the booklet knew more about what might happen to them, were less uncertain and had fewer concerns when going home.Practice implicationsThe combination of standardised written information and a talk with the nurse where patients participated in individualising the information appears to have had a significant impact on self-management at home.