ABSTRACT

This study explored the patient characteristics and outcomes in relation to guardianship in a large-scale sub-acute Australian hospital. Fifteen patients who appointed a guardian at The Kingston Center, Monash Health, participated through exploratory data collection and analysis utilizing a de-identifiable template. The findings revealed both diverse and complex patient characteristics, and ethical dilemmas in patient outcomes for social workers. Patient outcomes post-guardianship appointment and discharge highlighted a negative impact from long length of stay and the iatrogenic impact on patient wellbeing in hospital. The study reflected a disparity between patients’ discharge goals and their outcomes indicating significant ethical dilemmas and complexities for social workers in ensuring rights to autonomy and responsibility for safety are balanced.

摘要

本研究探讨了澳大利亚一家大型亚急性医院中与监护相关的患者特征和结果。在莫纳什健康中心金斯顿中心任命监护人的 15 名患者参与了使用去识别化模板的探索性数据收集和分析。调查结果揭示了患者的多样化和复杂的特征，以及社会工作者患者结果的伦理困境。监护任命和出院后的患者结果突出了长期住院的负面影响以及对住院患者健康的医源性影响。