Discussion
This study identified five distinct types of home-visit nursing
agencies. The nurse-centered agencies accounted for
approximately 10% of all agencies. This type of agency had
a characteristically larger number of nurses than other
agency types and less overall workers than rehabilitationcentered
agencies. Since the number of nurses was high,
the numbers of terminal-stage cancer patients (monthly
average: 5.8 persons) and home deaths per year (19.6) were
high. In general, these agencies accepted patients with a
high level of medical dependence, frequently requiring services
such as home intravenous alimentation, mechanical
ventilation, and control of narcotic medication.