Nursing-Sensitive Outcome Change Scores for Hospitalized Older Adults with Heart Failure: A Preliminary Descriptive Study

Nursing has a social mandate to ensure effective practice within its domain and to be accountable for the outcomes of nursing care. Using standardized nursing terminologies makes it possible to measure aspects of nursing care. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a significant difference in outcome ratings exists from admission to discharge for hospitalized older adults with heart failure (HF) using Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC). A retrospective descriptive research design was used. Data were obtained from 268 inpatient records of patients discharged with HF during a 1-year period. All top 10 NOC outcomes demonstrated statistically significant improvement in outcome ratings from admission to discharge. Findings from this study provide insight on the possible contribution of nursing to outcomes of hospitalized older adults with HF. Validating and incorporating nursing-sensitive outcome measures in future prospective experimental research can contribute to the advancement of science regarding effective treatment of older adults hospitalized with HF, while highlighting the contribution of nursing care to outcomes.