CITATION
McKechnie, D., Fisher, M. J., & Pryor, J. (2015). A Case-control Study Examining the Characteristics of Patients who Fall in an Inpatient Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitation Setting. The journal of head trauma rehabilitation.
SUMMARY
There is often a concern for falls in patients recovering from a TBI in an acute inpatient rehabilitation hospital setting. More-often-than-not, many documented falls can be prevented through changes in behaviors of the patient and/or staff members. This investigation discusses possible factors that could contribute to falls within this population, which include severity of TBI, post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) at admission, duration of PTA, FIM scores, GCS scores, and whether or not the patient had a previous history of falls, among other characteristics. The authors discuss additional considerations and recommendations to help reduce the risk of falls and ensure patient safety.
I CHOSE THIS ARTICLE BECAUSE I believe this is a serious issue within the inpatient hospital setting, and understanding the factors that contribute to falls will help to reduce the risk of additional injuries. Quality improvement studies such as this one allow clinicians to improve the treatment provided, and subsequently reduce the length of hospital stay.
THIS MONTH’S REHABILITATION SCIENCE SPOTLIGHT was chosen by Jared S. Link, M.S., Nova Southeastern University, College of Psychology; Member of Div. 22 Science Committee.