THE PREP SYSTEM OF NURSING INTERVENTIONS - A PILOT TEST WITH FAMILIESCARING FOR OLDER MEMBERS

The PREP system of nursing interventions, designed to increase prepare dness (PR), enrichment (E), and predictability (P) in families providi ng care to older people, was pilot tested for acceptability and prelim inary effectiveness. Eleven family units were assigned to the PREP gro up and 11 to a standard home health control group. The PREP group scor ed approximately one SD higher than the control group (p < .05) on the Care Effectiveness Scale, indicating greater preparedness, enrichment , and predictability. Further, on a rating of overall usefulness, the PREP group rated their assistance from PREP nurses (M = 9.75) as signi ficantly higher (p < .01) than the control group rated assistance from the home health nurse or physical therapist (M = 6.57). Although not statistically significant, mean hospital costs for the PREP group ($2, 775) were lower than for the control group ($6,929). Results provided support for a full intervention trial. (C) 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc .