J Korean Med Assoc.  2015 Feb;58(2):123-130. 10.5124/jkma.2015.58.2.123.

Prevention of fall in the hospital

• Lee JH
• Kim HA
• Park SW

• KMID: 1958374
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5124/jkma.2015.58.2.123

Abstract

Falls in the hospital are one of the most important patient safety issues. Falls can cause various kinds of injury as well as death, especially for fragile patients and elderly persons. Although patient falls are frequent, most of them are preventable. All patients should be carefully evaluated for risk factors for falling, and individualized care is necessary for fall-prone patients. There are numerous environmental issues regarding fall risk. Prevention of falls is not a prominent area of knowledge in many nursing departments. All medical personnel, including physicians and surgeons, need to know the basic facts and strategies regarding the prevention of falls in the hospital and contribute in their role to patient safety. In this review, current strategies for the prevention of falls in the hospital will be summarized.

Keyword

Fall; Risk factors; Prevention & control

MeSH Terms

Aged
Humans
Nursing
Patient Safety
Risk Factors

Figure

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  Figure 1 Acute subdural hematoma (white arrow) in the left frontotemporal convexity due to patient's fall.

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  Figure 2 Fracture (black arrow) at the left superior pubic ramus due to patient's fall.

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