Risk assessment and incidence of falls in adult hospitalized patients

Abstract

Objectives: assess the risk of falls in adult hospitalized patients and verify the incidence of the event in this environment.Method: cohort study, with approval by the Research Ethics Committee, which monitored 831 patients hospitalized at a university hospital. The Morse Fall Scale (MFS) was used to assess the risk and patients with high risk (≥45 points) were considered exposed to falls.Results: the mean MFS score was 39.4 (±19.4) points. Between the first and the final assessment, the score increased by 4.6%. The first assessment score presented a strong and positive correlation with the final assessment score (r=0.810; p=0.000).Conclusion: the higher the risk score for falls when the patient is admitted, the higher the score at the end of the hospitalization period and vice-versa. The incidence rate corresponded to 1.68% with a higher percentage of patients classified at high risk of falls.

A predictive model for fall risk in hospitalized adults: A case–control study

“…Falls from bed were the second most common: 22.9% and 17.9% of the test and validation samples, respectively. These findings are similar to those of other studies (Pasa et al., ; Remor et al., ). Patients spend most of their time in the bedroom while hospitalized, rather than the bathroom or corridors, which explains the higher prevalence of falls there (Prates et al., ; Victor et al., ).…”

“…It is possible that if these occurrences had been counted as lack of caregiver at the time of the fall, the behaviour of the variable would have been different. It is important to point out that patients rarely request help from the nursing team during the night and sometimes hesitate to ask for help from their caregivers because they are asleep (Ishikuro et al., ; Pasa et al., ).…”

Fatores de risco associados à queda em pacientes internados na clínica médica-cirúrgica

“…(1,2) One of the main adverse events in hospitals is patient falls, which is a global public health problem that impacts patient safety culture in hospital environments, since it is associated to emerging complications in patients' clinical state, extended hospitalizations and increasing hospital costs. (3,4) Furthermore, it may restrict daily activities, thus contributing to the onset of post-fall syndromes with dependency, loss of autonomy, immobilization and depression. Fall incidence in hospital environments varies from 1.1% to 22%, depending on care department and patient profile.…”

“…(6) Several factors may contribute to fall occurrence, such as impairments to balance, walking pace, visual acuity and cognition, as well as chronic diseases, postural hypotension, use of psychotropic medication, slippery surfaces, path obstacles and poor lighting. (3,4,7,8) Such factors may vary according to the location and the profile of care public. Therefore, identification of risk factors is important for efficient planning and implementation of fall prevention interventions, (3,4) guided by the identification of individuals with higher fall susceptibility.…”

“…(3,4,7,8) Such factors may vary according to the location and the profile of care public. Therefore, identification of risk factors is important for efficient planning and implementation of fall prevention interventions, (3,4) guided by the identification of individuals with higher fall susceptibility. (4,6) Considering that the medical clinic is a department which is present in most hospital institutions, the following question arises: what are the main risk factors for fall occurrence in the medical clinic department?…”