Falls in hospitalized patients: can nursing information systems data predict falls?

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Patient Safety
• Healthcare Informatics

Background:

• Inpatient falls are a frequent critical incident in hospitals, leading to significant morbidity and mortality.
• Predicting and preventing patient falls is a critical aspect of hospital care and patient safety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if specific nursing units of care, identified in patient care plans, can predict falls in hospitalized inpatients.
• To evaluate the utility of nursing information systems in identifying high-risk fall patients.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 7167 inpatient admissions from the 2002 calendar year.
• Ascertainment of faller status from the hospital's accident and incident monitoring system.
• Identification of activated nursing units of care within the hospital's nursing information system.

Main Results:

• Twelve specific nursing units of care were found to predict inpatient falls.
• Nursing units related to patient safety, confusion, incontinence, medication, mobility, and sleep were significant risk factors.
• The total number of activated nursing units of care also predicted falls.

Conclusions:

• Nursing units of care activated in patient care plans are significant predictors of inpatient falls.
• Data from nursing information systems can effectively identify patients at high risk for falls.
• Targeted interventions based on identified nursing units of care may reduce fall incidents.