CRITICAL REVIEW REPORT

The effectiveness of falls prevention strategies in residential aged care facilities

The effectiveness of falls prevention strategies in residential aged care facilities

Introduction

The purpose of this study is to expand the boundaries of our knowledge by exploring some relevant facts and figures relating to the effectiveness of falls prevention strategies in residential aged care facilities. An accidental fall is defined as the unintentional drop from an upright or other secure position to a less erect position on a lower level (e.g., the floor, into a chair) for reasons other than loss of consciousness, sudden onset paralysis, or seizure. Falls are the leading cause of accidental death among older adults and result in significant disability in 20-30% of older adults who fall. Risk factors for falls include Parkinson's disease, cognitive limitations, environmental hazards, and visual impairment. The prevalence of falls among older adults living in the community is 35-40%, and is significantly higher among older adults in skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and hospitals than among older adults living in the community (Elley, 2008, pp. 1383-1389).

Results

Following are the six articles that were critically assessed in this study:

Kirsten A. N (2011), Physician Perspectives on Fall Prevention in Assisted Living, Chapel Hill, Print, pp. 1-48

Marion E.T. (2000), A Randomized Controlled Trial of Fall Prevention Strategies in Old People's Homes, Department of Medicine, University of Dundee, Ninewell Hospital and Medical School, Dundee, UK, pp. 1-23

Haralambous, B (2010), A protocol for an individualised, facilitated and sustainable approach to implementing current evidence in preventing falls in residential aged care facilities, Preventive and Public Health Division, National Ageing Research Institute, pp. 1-7

Cusimano, M (2012), Effectiveness of multifaceted fall-prevention programs for the elderly in residential care, Inj Prev, 14:113-122

Schub T, (2012), Falls, Accidental: Risk Assessment, Nursing Reference Center, pp. 1-5

Pravikoff D (2011), Fall Prevention Plans: Implementing, Nursing Reference Center, pp. 1-6

These articles were selected on the basis of their reliability and the quality of evidence use to prove the effectiveness of fall prevention strategies in residential aged care facilities. Another reason for selecting these articles is attributed to their correlative feature; each article is interrelated with reference to the implementation and implication of fall prevention strategies in care facilities. After compiling a list of suitable publications, the 6 appraised as being of the highest quality were chosen. No RCTs were found which were important or not included in the systematic reviews (as these were quite recent). Over 20 systematic reviews, meta-analyses and review articles were identified. These were cut down to 6. All but one of the chosen articles was found in the database search, one was located via the references of another. All of the selected articles are composed and written in the light of evidence based practice. The primary reason for selecting these six articles is that each of these present their argument in a clear and concise manner, the author has made sure only to select those articles having least complexity

Evidence Source One

Kirsten A. N (2011), Physician Perspectives on Fall Prevention in Assisted Living, Chapel Hill, ...