Nurses’ knowledge, attitude, and fall prevention practices at south Korean hospitals: a cross-sectional survey

Abstract

Background Fall-prevention activities are nursing interventions which are designed to improve patient safety. The introduction of evaluations of medical institutions and an increase in medical litigation has led institutions to emphasize the importance of fall-prevention activities. The current situation regarding falls among patients in small and medium-sized hospitals is poorly understood. This study assessed knowledge and attitudes regarding falls, and fall-prevention activities of nurses working in small- and medium-sized hospitals. Methods Nurses (N = 162) from seven small- and medium-sized hospitals participated in the study. Data on participants’ characteristics, education regarding patient falls, knowledge of stretcher cart use, attitudes regarding patient falls, and fall-prevention activities were collected from August 1 to September 1, 2016. Results Nurses’ knowledge of patient falls was positively correlated with their experience with inpatient falls. Furthermore, nurses’ attitudes regarding falls were influenced by their nursing experience and fall prevention education. Attitudes positively correlated with fall-prevention activities, but knowledge did not. Nurses’ attitudes regarding patient falls were correlated with fall-prevention activities. Conclusion Hospitals should develop incentive programs to improve nurses’ attitudes which are based on their subjective norms and tailored to each hospital’s specific circumstances to ensure engagement in fall prevention activities. In short, we recommend that consistent, repeated, and custom fall-prevention education should be implemented in small- and medium-sized hospitals to promote engagement in fall-prevention activities. Patient safety activities in small- and medium-sized hospitals can be enhanced by creating an environment that encourages active and self-directed participation in developing fall-prevention strategies using motivation and rewards.

Evidence-based nursing practice and prevention of falls in hospitalized patients

“…Cho y col. (23) reportan que las actitudes sobre las caídas se relacionaron positivamente con la participación en actividades de prevención de caídas (r = 0,25, p = 0,001), pero no se observaron relaciones significativas entre el conocimiento de las caídas y la participación en actividades de prevención de caídas (r = -0,09, p = 0,267) o el conocimiento de las caídas y las actitudes hacia ellas (r = 0,09, p = 0,240).…”

“…Los hallazgos descritos anteriormente indican que debe implementarse una educación consistente y recurrente para la prevención de caídas adaptada a los hospitales pequeños y medianos para promover el compromiso con las actividades de prevención de caídas. (23) La promoción de cambios en las actitudes con respecto a las caídas mediante la introducción de programas de refuerzo de actitudes que tengan en cuenta las normas subjetivas de las enfermeras debe mejorar su sentido de la responsabilidad y actuar cotidiano. (32)…”

The effectiveness of multimedia combined with teach-back method on the level of knowledge, confidence and behavior of professional caregivers in preventing falls in elderly patients: A randomized non-blind controlled clinical study

“…In this study, 56% of the control group just had a primary school education or below, and it was 62% in the observation group, which was similar to the results of Cho MY. [ 14 ] On the other hand, it may be that the caregivers had not received professional trainings about how to prevent fall. Gu YY [ 15 ] pointed out that the main way for caregivers to acquire fall-related knowledge is through personal life experience and hospital training.…”

Creating an Implementation Enhancement Plan for a Digital Patient Fall Prevention Platform Using the CFIR-ERIC Approach: A Qualitative Study

“…is fed back on a continuing basis to help maintain engagement. A study of 162 nurses from South Korean hospitals found a positive correlation between nurses' attitudes regarding patient falls and the execution of fall prevention activities [25]. As suggested by the ERIC tool [2], there is a need for consistent, repeated and customised fall prevention education to promote engagement in fall prevention activities.…”