Focus of Care: Family
The physical needs, psychological needs and
Home Visit
The home visit is a family-nurse contact which allows
the health worker to assess the home and family
situations in order to provide the necessary nursing
care and health related activities. In performing this
activity, it is essential to prepare a plan of visit to
meet the needs of the client and achieve the best
results of desired outcomes.
Purpose of Home Visit
1. To give nursing care to the sick, to a post
partum mother and her newborn with the
view to  teach a responsible family member
to give the subsequent care. 
2. To assess the living condition of the patient and
his family and their health practices in order to  available resources and their ability to make use of
provide the appropriate health teaching  their resources for their benefits
3. To give health teachings regarding the prevention
and control of diseases 
4. To establish close relationship between the health
agencies and the public for the promotion  of health  2. State the purpose of the visit
5. To make use of the inter-referral system and to
promote the utilization of community services.
Principles involved in preparing for a home visit
1. A home visit must have a purpose or objective.
2. Planning for a home visit should make use of all
available information about the patient and his
family through family records.
3. In planning for a visit, we should consider and give
priority to the essential needs of the individual and
his family.
4. Planning and delivery of care should involve the
individual and family.
5. The plan should be flexible.
Guidelines to consider regarding the frequency of
home visits
1.
educational needs of the individual and
family
2. The acceptance of the family for the services to be
rendered, their interest and the willingness to
cooperate
3. The policy of a specific agency and the emphasis
given towards their health programs
4. Take into account other health agencies and the
number of health personnel already involved in the
care of a specific family
5. Careful evaluation of past services given to a
family and how the family avail of the nursing
services
6. The ability of the patient and his family to
recognize their own needs, their knowledge of
Steps in conducting home visits
1. Greet the patient and introduce yourself
3. Observe the patient and determine the health
needs
4. Put the bag in a convenient place then proceed to
perform the bag technique
5. Perform the nursing care needed and give health
teachings
6. Record all important data, observation and care
rendered
7. Make appointment for a return visit
Standard procedures performed during clinic visits
I. Registration/Admission
II. Waiting time
III. Triaging
IV. Clinical Evaluation c. Who makes decision about money and
how it is spent
V. Laboratory and other diagnostic examinations 
ii. Educational Attainment of each Member
VI. Referral System 
iii. Ethnic Background and Religious Affiliation
VII. Prescription/Dispensing
iv. Significant others-role (s) they play in family’s life
VIII. Health Education 
v. Relationship of the family to larger community-
INITIAL DATA BASE FOR FAMILY NURSING PROCESS   nature and extent of participation of the family in
community activities
1) Family Structure Characteristics and
Dynamics Home Environment 
2) Socio-economic and Cultural Characteristics
i. Housing 
3) Home Environment 
a. Adequacy of living space 
4) Health Status of Each Family Member
b. Sleeping arrangement 
5) Values, Habits, Practices on Health Promotion,
Maintenance and Disease Prevention.   c. Presence of breeding or resting sites of vectors of
diseases (e.g. mosquitoes, roaches,  flies, rodents,
etc.) 
Family Structure Characteristics and Dynamics
d. Presence of accident hazard 
⮚ Members of the household and relationship
to the head of the family.  e. Food storage and cooking facilities 
⮚ Demographic data-age, sex, civil status,
position in the family  f. Water supply-source, ownership, potability 
⮚ Place of residence of each member-whether
living with the family or elsewhere g. Toilet facilities-type, ownership, sanitary
⮚ Type of family structure-e.g. patriarchal, condition 
matriarchal, nuclear or extended 
⮚ Dominant family members in terms of h. Garbage/refuse disposal-type, sanitary condition 
decision making especially on matters of
health  care  ii. Drainage System- type, sanitary condition 
⮚ General family relationship/dynamics-
presence of any obvious/readily observable iii. Kind of Neighborhood, e.g. congested, slum etc. 
conflict between members; characteristics,
communication/interaction patterns among iv. Social and Health facilities available 
members. 
v. Communication and transportation facilities
available 

Socio-economic and Cultural Characteristics

i. Income and expenses Health Status of Each Family Member

a. Occupation, place of work and income of
each working member
b. Adequacy to meet basic necessities (food,
clothing, shelter)
i. Medical Nursing history indicating current or
past significant illnesses or beliefs and
practices conducive to health and illness
ii. Nutritional assessment (especially for vulnerable
or at risk members)
∙ Anthropometric data: measures of nutritional
status of children-weight, height, mid-upper arm
circumference; risk assessment measures for
obesity : body mass index(BMI=weight in kgs.
divided by height in meters2), waist circumference
(WC: greater than 90 cm. in men and greater than 80
cm. in women), waist hip ration (WHR=waist
circumference in cm. divided by hip circumference in
cm.

Central obesity: WHR is equal to or greater than 1.0

cm in men and 0.85 in

women)

∙ Dietary history specifying quality and quantity of

food or nutrient per day

∙ Eating/ feeding habits/ practices

iii. Developmental assessment of infant, toddlers and

preschoolers- e.g. Metro Manila Developmental
Screening Test (MMDST).

iv. Risk factor assessment indicating presence of

major and contributing modifiable risk factors for
specific lifestyle diseases-e.g. hypertension, physical
inactivity, sedentary lifestyle, cigarette/ tobacco
smoking, elevated blood lipids/ cholesterol, obesity,
diabetes mellitus, inadequate fiber intake, stress,
alcohol drinking, and other substance abuse.

v. Physical Assessment indicating presence of illness

state/s (diagnosed or undiagnosed by medical
practitioners )

vi. Results of laboratory/diagnostic and other

screening procedures supportive of assessment
findings.