Abstract:
Little is known about the transitional care for patients with mental illness, particularly schizophrenia.
The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the concept of transitional care which is applied to
schizophrenia patients. Walker and Avant’s concept analysis were used to analyze the concept of
transition care in schizophrenia patient. Data were collected from a review of Web of Knowledge, Pub
Med, CINAHL, Cohcrane, and Google scholar databases using “transitional care”, “transitional care
in schizophrenia”, “transitional care in mental illness” , and “transitional care in psychiatric” as
keywords. Articles written in the English language, with an abstract, published between 1998 and
2012 were considered. The search yielded 8 articles. Data were synthesized to identify attributes,
antecedents and consequences of transitional care. The transitional care described as a smooth process
moving patient from one level of care to another and involved the health care providers in each of the
levels. The defining attributes of transitional care separate in period in hospital and post
hospitalization. The primary antecedent of transitional care is readmission, which is caused by
psychotic symptom and inadequate planning of the patient’s discharge. Consequences of transitional
care include decreasing the length of stay and reducing the readmission, improving quality of care and
satisfaction with health care providers. The empirical referent of the concept is the Care Transitions
Measure (CTM). Providing explanation about transitional care in schizophrenia will allow completion
in the delivery of transitional care for schizophrenia people in hospital. These findings are useful for
nursing intervention program, research, and making policy.
