[Current status of our home care].

We report a current status of our home care cases. Our home care has provided for 76 patients (46 men, 30 women) since July 1996. The average age was 73 (range 32-92) years old. The shortest period of home care was for 1 day, and the longest period of home care was achieved for 5 years and 5 months. 70 of the 76 patients suffered from malignant diseases. Of these patients, 53 patients were terminally ill cancer patients. 63 patients of the 76 had died, and over half of them (35 out of the 63 patients) had died at home. 14 of the 76 patients who were treated by other hospitals and clinics came to our hospital by means of referral, and we provided them our home care with the cooperation of these hospitals and clinics. No problems existed in our hospital with issues regarding discharge planning and nursing cooperation.