Jessica N. Walker, DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
Dawn Vanderhoef, PhD, DNP, PMHNP, FAANP, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
J Am Psychiatr Nurses Assoc. 2022 Nov-Dec;28(6):474-479. doi: 10.1177/10783903211011669. Epub 2021 May 5.
Patients who experience homelessness and have mental illness can have frequent and challenging hospitalizations. Nurses caring for this vulnerable population may have negative attitudes, which can be mitigated by education and improved for the benefit of patients. This study aimed to assess the impact of an educational intervention on the attitudes of nursing staff toward individuals experiencing homelessness and mental illness.
Using a pre-post design, a revised version of the Health Professionals' Attitudes Toward the Homeless Inventory (HPATHI) assessed 23 nursing staff working on inpatient medicine units surrounding a brief educational session about persons experiencing homelessness and mental illness. Data were also collected from open-ended questions.
There was a small positive increase in mean HPATHI scores postintervention (74.783 [ = 5.485] to 77.13 [ = 6.312]) indicating more positive participant attitudes toward homeless individuals. The HPATHI also revealed a 6% increase in score for participant comfortability providing care for homeless persons with major mental illness postintervention. Some participants likely interpreted their answers as displaying more positive and less cynical attitudes based on their comments, while the HPATHI scored them as more negative. Qualitative feedback revealed both positive and negative attitudes toward this patient population, and various associated barriers to care.
Nursing staff will likely provide care for patients who experience homelessness with concomitant mental illness. Educating nurses about the needs of this population is feasible and could be beneficial for patient care.
患有精神疾病且无家可归的患者可能会频繁且频繁地住院。照顾这一弱势群体的护士可能持消极态度，通过教育和改善，可以减轻这些态度对患者的影响。本研究旨在评估教育干预对护理人员对无家可归和患有精神疾病的个体的态度的影响。
采用前后测设计，使用修订后的卫生专业人员对无家可归者态度量表（HPATHI）对 23 名在内科病房工作的护理人员进行评估，这些护理人员接受了有关无家可归者和精神疾病患者的简短教育课程。还从开放式问题中收集数据。
干预后平均 HPATHI 评分略有上升（74.783[=5.485]至 77.13[=6.312]），表明参与者对无家可归者的态度更为积极。HPATHI 还显示，干预后，参与者为患有严重精神疾病的无家可归者提供护理的舒适度提高了 6%。一些参与者可能根据自己的评论将答案解释为表现出更积极和不那么愤世嫉俗的态度，而 HPATHI 将他们的得分评为更消极。定性反馈揭示了对这一患者群体的各种积极和消极态度，以及与护理相关的各种障碍。
护理人员可能会为患有精神疾病且同时无家可归的患者提供护理。对护士进行有关这一人群需求的教育是可行的，并且可能对患者护理有益。
