Falls Prevention Awareness Day is an opportunity to look at the many ways healthcare facilities can support patient safety. It is not the responsibility of a single person or department. Nurses, physicians, transport teams, environmental services staff, therapists and patients themselves can all play a role. The physical environment is also part of the equation.
The challenge for healthcare facilities is bringing all of these pieces together into a consistent falls prevention strategy.
Falls Prevention Starts With Understanding Risk
Falls remain a major concern, especially for older adults. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that more than 14 million adults age 65 and older fall each year. That represents about one in four older adults.
In a healthcare setting, falls risk can be influenced by many factors. A patient may have difficulty walking. Medications can cause dizziness or weakness. An unfamiliar environment can make it harder to move safely. A patient who was steady earlier in the day may need more assistance later. That is why falls prevention starts with understanding each patient’s individual falls risk. It also requires healthcare teams to turn that information into action.
Look at the Entire Patient Environment
There is no single solution for falls prevention. Instead, facilities can build layers of protection around patients. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality describes falls prevention as a three-step process: assessing falls risk, developing a personalized prevention plan and carrying out that plan consistently.
Depending on the patient and setting, a falls prevention strategy may include:
- Keeping frequently used items within reach
- Providing appropriate footwear
- Removing clutter and other environmental hazards
- Helping patients move to and from beds or chairs
- Making mobility aids easy to access
- Educating patients and families about falls risk
- Using clear ways to identify patients who need additional assistance
The goal is not simply to identify falls risk. It is to make that information useful to the people caring for the patient.
Give Staff Information They Can Use Quickly
Healthcare staff process a large amount of information during every shift. Falls prevention systems should support them without adding unnecessary complexity. Visual identification can be one part of that approach.
For example, color-coded patient gowns can provide an immediate visual cue that complements information in the patient’s record and care plan. HCSC’s Falls Risk Program includes bright yellow patient gowns designed to help make falls risk easier to recognize. This can be especially useful when many different people interact with a patient. A falls risk gown does not replace patient assessments, documentation or communication. Instead, it serves as another tool within a larger falls prevention program.
Think Beyond the Patient Room
Falls prevention practices need to support patients throughout the healthcare environment. Patients may travel to imaging, therapy, diagnostic testing or other areas of a facility. They may interact with staff members who are not part of their regular care team. Healthcare facilities can consider whether their falls prevention practices remain clear and easy to follow throughout these interactions.
Are falls risk precautions easy to understand? Do departments follow consistent practices? Can staff quickly recognize when someone may need additional assistance? Do patients and families understand their role in falls prevention? Questions like these can help facilities identify opportunities to strengthen their existing approach.
Make Falls Prevention Part of Everyday Care
Falls Prevention Awareness Day brings additional attention to an important patient safety issue. But falls prevention requires an everyday commitment. A comprehensive approach can combine falls risk assessment, communication, patient education, environmental precautions and tools that help make falls risk easier to recognize. Each piece supports the larger falls prevention strategy.
For healthcare facilities looking to add a clear visual tool to their existing approach, HCSC’s Falls Risk Program provides specialized patient gowns designed to support falls prevention efforts while meeting the functional needs of healthcare environments.