Paper
Thursday, 20 July 2006
This presentation is part of : Community-Based Care Initiatives
Evidence-Based Practice: A Model Academic-Community Partnership
Bethany A. Hall-Long, PhD, RNC, FAAN, School, Universiyt of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA and Gale Moore Bucher, RN, MSN, Quality Assurance, Christiana Care Visiting Nurse Association, New Castle, DE, USA.
Learning Objective #1: State 4-5 evidence based practice measures to address the delivery of nursing care and public policy with vulnerable populations.
Learning Objective #2: Identify 4 key strategies to replicate and adapt the model academic-community based partnership.
Diabetes is the fifth leading cause of death in Delaware, and is the eighth leading cause of death in the nation. Over 8% of Delaware’s residents and one in six inpatient clients of the state’s largest, non-profit health care system, Christiana Care, are known diabetics. An academic-community diabetes home health education partnership was created in response to this problem. The partners were the University of Delaware and the Christiana Care, Visiting Nurse Association (VNA).

An evaluation study was conducted to analyze the relative effectiveness of  the  community-based intervention on the self-management behaviors of diabetics in Delaware.  Secondary goals of the partnership were to improve access to diabetic care and to expand education and evidenced-based practice opportunities. The Iowa Model was synthesized with a health education framework to guide the partnership.

A purposive sample of 145, VNA adult diabetic clients participated in the model program (2003-2005).  Certified diabetes nurse educators (CDEs), faculty, and undergraduate student nurses’ used the same educational guidelines to teach and monitor the sample across 4 semesters. Scheduled follow-up phone calls were placed to monitor clients 

The program included classroom instruction (8 hrs) and 4-5 weekly home visits. Data were collected using the VNA documentation forms and the research tools: the Mini Mental State Exam, the Michigan Diabetes Research Training Center’s Diabetes Tests, a 24 hour recall dietary log, and a weekly activity sheet. Non-parametric tests (i.e., content analyses, distributions) were used to analyze the data.

The study findings reflected the effectiveness of the academic-community partnership. For example, over 33% of the diabetic clients reported an increase in self-management behaviors and 65% an increase in motivation and support for behavior change. The presentation concludes with future implications and tips for replication of evidenced based practice through collaboration.

See more of Community-Based Care Initiatives
See more of The 17th International Nursing Research Congress Focusing on Evidence-Based Practice (19-22 July 2006)