Individualised nursing care, services and leadership

Within this research area we produce knowledge and research relevant for 1) nursing care of ageing and older people in different contexts, 2) services and service chains for ageing population and individuals and 3) leadership, collaboration and organisational development for ensuring nursing care and services for older people and ageing population.

Individualised nursing care, competence, and interventions

We aim to develop individually tailored care and services for older people to enhance their self-management, independent living and meaningful life, and quality of care from different perspectives, nationally and internationally, targeting the future. Nursing care and care interventions for older people need specific competence and collaborative activities. Research in this field focus on nursing care activities executed by professional nurses and their competence in older people nursing care, and on the effects of nurse led individualised interventions on patient, nurse and organisational outcomes in the different care settings.

Individualised services and leadership

Giving the ageing nations and an increased burden of chronic conditions, and multimorbidity, a new way of providing services for older people in Finland and other countries is under integration. There are several questions outstanding for this development in healthcare, such as providing person-centered, individualised care and services that best match for each care receiver, eliminate overlap, advancing people’s own efforts and initiatives for health, developing better care pathways, processes and conditions for both the care receiver and care provider nationally and internationally. Research in this area focus on perceptions, functions, outcomes and continuity of nursing care and services and offer scientific knowledge for the development of service systems:

Our multi-disciplinary group aims to analyse, investigate and develop knowledge and solutions for services, to be individualised, accessible, usable, targeted and user-friendly. Analysis focus on both the individual (service user, service provider) and organisational point of views. This information assists in developing individualised care and services, preventing “institutionalization”, improving healthcare and nursing care processes, and promoting positive outcomes for both patients and staff in different care contexts.

Researchers / doctoral students:

• Minna Ylönen: Nursing care with patients with leg ulcers – Developing an Internet-based education programme for nurses (completed 2020)
• Emilia Kielo: Graduating student nurses’ wound care competence – Development and validation of a wound care competence assessment instrument (completed 2021)

• Terhi Lemetti: Nurse to nurse collaboration between hospital and primary health care on older people nursing care (completed 2020)
• Katja Lahtinen: Individualised care competence in older people nursing – Modelling and testing
• Mari Pakkonen: Person-Centred Care – Development and testing of continuing education intervention for caregivers in older people long-term care
• Lisa van Dongen. Future Nurse Leaders – Advancing careers of doctorally prepared nurses

Researchers / master students:

• Satu Huusko: Hoitohenkilöstön kompetenssi ikääntyneiden hoitotyössä (completed 2020)
• Hanna Kortelainen: Ympärivuorokautisen hoidon henkilöstöön liittyvä resurssien allokointi (completed 2021)
• Heidi Hyttinen: Nettisivuilta välittyvä tieto palvelun sisällöstä päätöksenteon edellytyksenä (completed 2021)
• Iida-Maria Juutinen: Individualised care of people with progressive memory disorders
• Sanna Pietikäinen: Näyttöön perustuvan toiminnan prosessin arviointi – mittarin validointi
• Sari Venho: Kompleksisen emotionaalisen trauman toteutumaton hoito – traumapotilaan näkökulma

The results can be applied to:

• give a realistic view to general public about care settings of older people
• the evaluation of care quality and health care quality improvement
• the development of clinical nursing care and care environments both nationally and internationally
• advancing patient outcomes
• analysing and advancing competence in nursing and education
• advancing scientific knowledge base in older people nursing science.