Date of Award
Fall 12-13-2014
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
Department
Education
First Advisor
Greene, Debbie
Second Advisor
Sewell, Jeanne
Third Advisor
Brooks, Sarah
Abstract
Abstract
Prevention of inpatient falls remains a challenge for nurses. Despite fall prevention efforts by nurses, the rate of patient falls in the acute care setting is a major safety concern. The aim of this translational project is to implement an evidence-based fall prevention program at a small community hospital, based on the Morse Fall Scale with targeted interventions to decrease fall rates. Research indicates the best practices for nurses to manage patients at-risk for falls and using fall prevention strategies that will keep patients safe from falls during hospitalization. The three phases of this project, included development of the fall-risk program in the Paragon Electronic Medical Record, implementation of an educational intervention, measurement of program compliance and fall rate outcomes. The fall-risk program was effective in decreasing the fall rate from 1.4 to 0.0 falls per 1,000 patient days for two consecutive months after the implementation the educational intervention. Results from this project support the use of the Morse Fall Scale with evidence-based targeted interventions to decrease fall rates.
Keywords: falls in acute care setting, targeted fall prevention interventions, fall-risk assessments, fall prevention, Morse Fall Scale
Recommended Citation
Jenkins-Jacobs, Angela G., "Implementation of Best Practices for Fall Prevention in a Community Hospital" (2014). Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Translational and Clinical Research Projects. 3.
https://kb.gcsu.edu/dnp/3