The aim of the study is to determine the fear of falling, the risk of falling, the behaviour of falling and the dependence on care in older people living in nursing homes and homes and to evaluate the relationship between them.
Material and Method:The study was a comparative-descriptive design. It was conducted in Nursing Home (64) and Family Health Center (64) with 128 elderly individuals. In the study, Tinetti Falls Efficacy Scale, The In-Home Safety Conditions Assessment Form for Falls, The Falls Behavioral Scale for Older People, The Care Dependency Scale were used. The data was collected by the researcher using the face-to-face interview technique and observation method by making home and nursing home visits.
Results:The Tinetti Fall Activity Scale scores of the elderly living in the home were higher than the scale scores of the elderly living in the nursing home but the difference between them was not significant (p>0.05). The total falls risk scores and the falling behaviour scale scores of the older people living in the home were higher than the total falls risk scores of the older people living in the nursing home (p<0.05). For older people living at home and nursing home, a positive and strong relationship was found between care addiction and fear of falling (r=0.777, p=0.001). It was found in the study that 40% of care dependence in the elderly was explained by the fear of falling.
Conclusion:It is recommended that nurses should evaluate the fall situations and risk factors of individuals living in their homes, and then, they should make plans to reduce risks and falls without increasing care dependency.