Setting realistic goals for quality assurance monitoring: patient falls versus patient days

In order to set criteria for determining an acceptable level of patient falls, Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, New Jersey created a regression line predicting the expected frequency of patient falls by patient days. The regression line was derived from data reflecting the hospital's own experience with patient falls during a two-year period. The medical center now compares predicted and actual fall rates on a monthly basis. Corrective actions are implemented when the number of falls rises above the regression line during two consecutive months. The regression line thus serves as a useful method of determining the need for enhanced QA activities.