Support needs of discharge coordination nurses in Japan

To determine the support needs of discharge coordinator nurses (DCNs) who are key individuals in promoting the continuum of care and multidisciplinary collaboration in Japan. A questionnaire survey in a prefecture in Eastern Japan and expert panels was conducted. The quantitative and descriptive data were analysed statistically and qualitatively or inductively, respectively. Valid responses of 42 DCNs were analysed (response rate, 10.2%). Hospital and clinic DCNs had an average nursing experience of 24.39 and 25.25 years, respectively; their average discharge coordinator experience was 3.9 and 18.6 years, respectively. About half of the DCNs were trained in discharge coordination (average training, 23.8 hours). The features of coordinated cases were 75 years, malignant neoplasm or cerebrovascular disease, discharge patients' home, and medical treatments required after discharge. Support needs were summarised into nine categories: basic knowledge of discharge coordination; communication skills, such as consensus building; family nursing, such as help making decisions regarding hospital discharge; discharge coordination for elderly, including setting a goal to improve their QOL; discharge coordination for complex cases, such as patients with dementia living a solitary life; organisation of a hospital's discharge system, e.g., effective screening methods; cooperation with other healthcare organisations in the community, such as making contacts; dealing with ethical problems; and self-development as a DCN, such as making peer networks. Our results showed that DCNs without enough training have heavy responsibilities. Their support needs were organised into two categories: learning interaction skills with micro-to-macro systems and