Falls risk assessment: a foundational element of falls prevention programs
- Collection:
- Health Policy and Services Research
- Series Title(s):
- Pennsylvania patient safety advisory
- Contributor(s):
- Feil, Michelle. Gardner, Lea Anne. Pennsylvania. Patient Safety Authority. ECRI (Organization) Institute for Safe Medication Practices.
- Publication:
- [Harrisburg, Pa.] : Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority, c2012
- Language(s):
- English
- Format:
- Text
- Subject(s):
- Accidental Falls -- prevention & control Program Development Risk Assessment -- methods Accidental Falls -- statistics & numerical data Aged Guideline Adherence Health Status Indicators Mobility Limitation Practice Guidelines as Topic Risk Factors Sensitivity and Specificity Humans Pennsylvania United States
- Genre(s):
- Technical Report
- Abstract:
- Falls risk assessment is a foundational element of falls prevention programs. Many falls risk assessment tools have been developed to screen for risk factors most predictive of falls. Studies have found that these tools accurately identify patients who will fall or those who are at high risk of falling with a sensitivity and specificity of greater than 70%. Pairing risk assessment with functional assessment tests and injury risk assessments shows promise of further delineating patients at highest risk of falls and falls-with-injury events. Initial screening for falls risk using these tools forms the basis for further risk assessment and formulation of a multifactorial falls prevention plan with interventions targeted to the risk factors identified. In 2011, the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority received reports of more than 32,000 falls. Of these patients who fell, 64% were reported to have had a falls risk assessment completed, 60% had been identified as at risk for falling, and 65% were reported to have had prevention strategies in place. While these statistics may reflect a lack of documentation, rather than a deficiency in practice, evaluation of compliance with best practices with respect to falls prevention is warranted, beginning with performance of a falls risk assessment for all patients.
- Copyright:
- Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further use of the material is subject to CC BY-NC-ND license. (More information)
- NLM Unique ID:
- 101591650 (See catalog record)
- Permanent Link:
- http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/101591650