Morbidity In Falls Population

Decent Essays
Falls are a major health problem among the elderly. They are among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in older adults in the United States. The risk of falling and having consequent injuries increase as people grow older. A fall may be the first indication of an undetected illness and prevent falls help maintain health and independence as long as possible.
The U.S. population of older adults are those born between 1946 and 1964, those beginning to reach 65 years of age (World Health Organization). Simultaneously, advancements in medical care and improved awareness of healthy lifestyles have led to longer life expectancies. The Census Bureau projects that the population of Americans 65 years of age and older will rise from approximately

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (2013), approximately 900,000 cases of falls are reported every year from hospitals around the country. Some of these fall are with serious life threatening injuries. Unfortunately, the hospital is responsible to take on all these extra charges that frankly could have been prevented if all the strategies were in place. As healthcare providers, more can be done to keep patients safe. Implementing the fall prevention strategies is guarantee to decrease fall by 70% by the first…

    • 944 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the hospital setting, falls continue to be the number one adverse event, with approximately 3-20% of inpatients falling at least once during their hospitalization, and 30 to 51% of falls in hospitals result in some injury. (Oliver, Healey., & Haines., 2010). Leaders must be able to must be able communicated information about fall interventions throughout the organization, to included staff at all level of the organization, patients and their families that will that will have a positive impact on patient safety and outcomes. Although nurses are the gate keeper for in patient safety and fall prevention efforts, it is equality important that all employees be involved in fall prevention strategies throughout the hospital systems. According to (Oliver et al, 2010; Spoelstra, Given & Given, 2012) may fall prevention strategies has been tested and elevated over the years, it will require multidisciplinary support for program that are in place for patients to feel safe from falls and injuries during their hospital…

    • 516 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    As a community health nurse working with the senior population, I often see the tragic outcome of patient falls. My patients are in the community setting and I have worked to implement many of the interventions mentioned in this article. I work to educate the patient and family on ways to prevent falls and encourage the use of non-skid socks, ensuring that pathways are free from clutter and that there is adequate lighting, along with ensuring all patients bathrooms are equipped with grab bars and non-slip surfaces to provide additional safety for patients In addition, recommendations are made to place bedside commodes at the bedside of patients that are a high fall risk. In the community setting additional intervention are made they include:…

    • 222 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    According to Barbour et al. (2012) often falls occurs with significant consequences for the elderly adult patients that include, hip fracture, brain injuries, limited functional abilities, and reductions in social, and physical activities. Barbour et al. further reported that falls are more commonly seen in an older adult with some form of arthritis condition that results from poor neuromuscular functioning. Falls, as reported by Barbour et al.…

    • 895 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Fall Prevention in Hospitals, Adult WHAT ARE SOME SAFETY TIPS FOR PREVENTING FALLS? If you or a loved one has to stay in the hospital, talk to the health care providers about the risk of falling. Find out which medicines or treatments can cause dizziness or affect balance. Make a plan with the health care providers to prevent falls.…

    • 669 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Great Essays

    Fall Reduction Program

    • 2091 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Accidents are one of those factors. The reported high cases of elderly people falling are due to the accident (Leland, 2012). Senior citizens are weak, and therefore, their probability of falling is very high. The configuration of the beds found in the healthcare facilities and Nursing homes are another leading factor that contributes to a significant number of patient falls. Beds with high heights make it difficult for the patients to disembark, and this may lead to falls.…

    • 2091 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Retrieved 10 April 2018, from https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/our-work/falls-prevention/ WHO. (2007). WHO Global Report on Falls Prevention in Older Age. Geneva 27, Switzerland: ISBN 978 92 4 156353 6. Stephenson, M., Macarthur, A., Giles, K., Lockwood, C., Aromataris, E., & Pearson, A. (2015).…

    • 1073 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Fall prevention in healthcare settings is currently a critical and common and important topic among healthcare officials and organizations. Healthcare institutions are trying to ascertain the determinants as to why individuals are at an increased risk for falls. One healthcare establishment that has noted an increased incidence of falls is nursing homes. Individuals who reside in a nursing home setting and have some type of cognitive impairment such as dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and those who take multiple medications pose a heightened risk for falls. Nursing homes can implement this research by examining which determinants many of their residents acquire in order to prevent falls in their facilities.…

    • 566 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    (p. 2). Furthermore, “this age cohort is expected to increase from 5.5 million in 2010 to 6.6 million in 2020, a 19% increase for that decade” (p. 3-4). In addition to this, according to Niles-Yokum and Wagner (2012), “the over-85 population will increase from approximately 3.6 million in 1995 to 6.1 million in 2012 and 9.6 million…

    • 1082 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    There are many various reasons as to why one would be in a Nursing home and because of all the reasons it can lead to causing falls. Many of these falls can lead to injury and even death; there are different measures used and put in place to try to prevent this. Some of the reasons that these falls occur are due to muscle weakness, walking and gait problems, environmental hazards, such as poor lighting or wet floors, medications, and transferring with improper equipment and foot wear (CDC, 2015). According to the CDC in a 100 bed facility, there are reports from 100 to 200 falls per year and still more that go unreported. Injuries that are caused by falls account for approximately 36 percent of possibly preventable visits to the emergency room from nursing home residents (Paul & Perkins, 2015).…

    • 591 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Evaluating Organizational Change A fall is the loss of an upright position, producing an uncontrolled and unintentional placement of an individual’s body from one surface to another. Many times serious injuries can result in the frail geriatric population. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (n.d.), lacerations, hip fractures, head traumas, and death can result from a fatal fall.…

    • 1324 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Falls among older adults is a serious issue, but research has shown that many fall risks can be reduced. (USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, 2017). In addition, falling is not a regular result of aging in adults. With the proper…

    • 569 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Falls prevention was a major concern on the pediatric neurological clinical site. Many of the children on the unit dealt with impaired gait due to the processes of the neurological disorder they were diagnosed with. Because of the major role the brain plays in one’s ability to be mobile, it is understandable that these children require close monitoring in order to prevent injury from a fall. According to Messmer and Williams (2012), there is considerable concern of falls when a patient is hospitalized. Not to mention the heightened awareness that accompanies the sequela of most neurological diseases.…

    • 804 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    With the advancement of medicine and technology, it is evident that there is a growing elderly population in the developed countries such as the United States. Perhaps, some casually phrase it as the “baby boomers getting older.” My experience as a nurse taught me that despite developments in modern medicine, there are challenges such as elderly independence and prevention of falls along with the combination of polypharmacy and multiple comorbidities posing as risks. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that 2.5 million people, with ages 65 and older, are treated in the emergency room for fall injuries (Center for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2013). Additionally, the CDC states that over 700,000 patients a year…

    • 939 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Inpatient Falls Prevention

    • 1563 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Prevention of Inpatient Falls Patient falls remain the most common adverse event in acute care facilities, with 2%-15% of hospitalized patients reported to fall at least once. Falls can lead to pain, loss of function, fear of further falls and even death (Tanaka, Sakuma, Ohtani, Toshiro, Matsumura, & Morimoto, 2012). An increased focus is being placed on inpatient falls because of morbidity, mortality, increased cost of care, and lack of reimbursement (Cumbler, Simpson, Rosenthal, & Likosky, 2013). The National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators (NDNQI) defines a fall as “an unplanned descent to the floor with or without injury to the patient” (Miake-Lye, Hempel, Ganz, & Shekelle, 2013).…

    • 1563 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays