Evaluation of home nurse attachment in Bristol.

By the end of June 1969 home nurses in Bristol were attached to 18 general practices caring for about 137,000 patients, or about one-third of the city's population. Attachment was associated with an increase by about one-third in the number of patients referred by general practitioners for home nursing. Additional benefits derived from attachment during the nine months from January to September 1969 were 2,047 items of service performed by nurses in general practitioners' surgeries, 65 home visits to patients who were not receiving domiciliary nursing care, improved communications between general practitioners and nurses, and opportunities for both doctors and nurses to widen their fields of work. The travelling expenses paid to Bristol's nurses increased by 9.5%.It is suggested that the benefits to patients, doctors, and nurses of attachment far outweigh the costs and that there is scope for extending the role of the attached nurse in the surgery and in home visiting.