Development of a scale to measure nurses clinical foresight for elderly patients with cognitive decline

49^th Annual Nursing Research and Evidence Based Practice Conference

August 20-21, 2018 Tokyo, Japan

Yukako Sugano

Tokyo Metropolitan University, Japan

Scientific Tracks Abstracts: Adv Practice Nurs

Abstract :

Aim: The aim of this study was to develop a scale to measure nurse's clinical foresight for elderly patients with cognitive decline (herein after referred to as scale). Method: First, the concept of nurse's clinical foresight for elderly patients with cognitive decline was analyzed by using the hybrid model, which comprises three phases (theoretical, fieldwork and final analytic). Second, based on the results of the above concept analysis, a conceptual framework was devised. A survey method was used to collect data from a total of 600 nurses at hospitals providing regional medical care in the provincial areas of Japan. To evaluate the scaleâ??s internal consistency, Cronbachâ??s alpha was calculated. To evaluate the factor structure, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed. To evaluate the discriminant validity, the difference in the scores between nurses and Certified Nurses in Dementia Nursing (CNDNs) were calculated. Result: Factor analysis showed that the scale consisted of five factors: (1) To use anticipation to guide better clinical judgments and behaviors, (2) to anticipate possible risks among elderly patients with cognitive decline, (3) to imagine the life of elderly patients with cognitive decline and their family members, (4) to notice the unexpected events among elderly patients with cognitive decline and their family members and (5) to anticipate the possibility that oneâ??s way of approaching elderly patients presenting signs of cognitive decline may not be appropriate. Cronbachâ??s alpha for the scale was high at 0.91. The total scale scores and all subscale scores of the CNDNs were significantly higher (p<0.001) than those of the nurses. Participants who achieved higher scale scores were significantly less likely to experience situations wherein the patientâ??s day-night reversal (p=0.033). Conclusion: The scale is useful for nurses to foster nurse's clinical foresight for elderly patients with cognitive decline.

Biography :

Yukako Sugano is a professor in Tokyo Metropolitan University, Japan and has a strong interest in dementia care for elderly in acute hospitals.

E-mail: Yukako.Sugano@gmail.com