Treating mental health crises at home: Patient satisfaction with home nursing care

Introduction: Crisis resolution home treatment teams (CRHTT) provide short-term, intensive home treatment to people experiencing mental health crises. Patient satisfaction has long been identified as a key element of quality of care; however, satisfaction with nursing care as part of this service has not been studied yet.
Aim: To assess patients’ and their families’ satisfaction with the nursing care provided through a home care program offered by a hospital in Catalonia which administers
person-centred care.
Method: A mixed methods research design was conducted. A cross-sectional study including quantitative survey data and qualitative interview data with a phenomenological focus was conducted.
Results: Twenty interviews were conducted. Patients and relatives reported high satisfaction that seems to be related to the person-centred nature of the care.
Discussion: The findings provide new insights, including how home treatment tends to equalize power relations between nurses and patients/the patient's family members, and how nurses increase sensitivity when focusing on service users’ needs and priorities, leading to high patient and family satisfaction.
Implications for practice: This research has both academic and clinical implications. It highlights what mental health patients and their families value most about home
care and interactions with nurses, and also drives improvements in current practices.