Two Sides to Every Fall: Patient and Nurse Perspectives

Area of Science:

• Healthcare quality and safety
• Patient experience in acute care
• Nursing research

Background:

• Falls remain a significant challenge in acute care settings despite extensive research on risk factors and prevention.
• Understanding the multifaceted nature of falls is crucial for improving patient safety in hospitals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore and categorize patient and nurse viewpoints on the causes of falls.
• To gather nurses' recommendations for preventing falls in a progressive cardiac care unit.

Main Methods:

• A qualitative content analysis was employed, interviewing patients and nurses in a 48-bed progressive cardiac care unit.
• Data were collected through open-ended questions regarding patient-reported falls, nurse-reported falls, and potential prevention strategies.

Main Results:

• Over two years, 67 falls were documented, primarily attributed to activity (61%), coordination (24%), and environmental factors (15%).
• Patients cited slipping, medical issues, dizziness, or leg weakness as fall causes, while nurses identified medical issues or failure to call for assistance.

Conclusions:

• Agreement between patients and nurses on fall causes was observed for assisted falls, but discrepancies emerged for unassisted falls.
• Nurses frequently identified the potential of bed alarms as a preventative measure for falls.