Evaluation of the Nurse Practitioner Offsite Model

Abstract

Rural older adults residing in assisted living (AL) (herein referred to as residents) have limited access to health care for urgent and chronic management of diseases. The current project aimed to assess rural residents, families, and staff satisfaction with the Nurse Practitioner (NP) Offsite Visit Program. Residents and their families were asked to complete the NP Satisfaction Survey. The survey comprised three subscales (satisfaction, communication, and accessibility) and measured residents' and families' satisfaction. AL staff attended a 1-hour focus interview. Mean survey scores were 81.5 for satisfaction, 26.4 for communication, and 16.9 for accessibility subscales. Focus interview themes included Care Coordination , Prevention of Acute Care Utilization , and Access to Care . Findings suggest that residents, families, and site staff believe the NP Offsite Visit Program was beneficial and improved care coordination between residents and the provider team. The next step is to evaluate the program's impact on residents' health outcomes and further evaluate the Offsite team membership. [ Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 49 (7), 25–30.]