Abstract

TAVARES, João Paulo de Almeida  and  SILVA, Alcione Leite da. Barriers and solutions in Continuing Care for the Elderly: Nurses’ perceptions. Rev. Enf. Ref. [online]. 2010, vol.serIII, n.1, pp.17-28. ISSN 0874-0283.

The National Network for Integrated Continuing Care (RNCCI) was created in Portugal, in 2006 to provide continuing care for the elderly and for dependent citizens. In this context, where nurses play an class="medium-text1">a leading role, there is a lack of studies which could identify barriers to Continuing Care (CC). Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify the barriers perceived by nurses to the development of continuing care for the elderly in an Integrated Continuing Care Unit and possible solutions to improve effectiveness. A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive approach was adopted for the study. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 13 nurses and analyzed using a hermeneutic-dialectic method. The results showed that the barriers and possible solutions which hinder the effectiveness of CC for the elderly in this unit are mainly administrative, financial and organisational.

Keywords : continuing care; barriers and solutions; elderly; qualitative study.

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