Evaluation of an Education Strategy versus Usual Care to Implement the STEADI Algorithm in Primary Care Clinics in an Academic Medical Center.

Background: Although falls are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the US in the older adult population, there is little information regarding implementation of evidence-based fall prevention guidelines within primary care settings. The objective of this study was to address this gap in the literature by determining the effectiveness of the use of education and written materials as implementation strategies.

Methods: Using a prospective, mixed methods, controlled before-and-after study design, we studied the effect of the Stopping Elderly Accidents, Deaths, and Injuries (STEADI) education and written materials on knowledge and intention to use in primary care clinics as well as test the screening, assessment, and intervention behaviors.

CE: Original Research: Predicting Injurious Falls in the Hospital Setting: Implications for Practice.

Background: Despite years of research and increasingly evidence-based practice, falls continue to be the most commonly reported adverse events experienced by hospitalized adults. Yet a majority of the relevant research has focused on predicting and preventing falls in general; there has been little focus on injurious falls.

Purpose: The purpose of this retrospective study was to determine which patient factors are associated with injurious falls in hospitalized adults.

Gender Difference in Falls among Adults Treated in Emergency Departments and Outpatient Clinics.

Background: This study examined the impact of gender on age-related increase for falls and injurious falls resulting in head injuries/fractures among adults, using data from both emergency department and clinic visits. We also estimated the percentages of falls treated in points of entry outside of emergency departments.

Methods: The study population consisted of 259,611 adults seen at emergency department, inpatient, and/or outpatient facilities between January, 2007 and June, 2012 at a US medical center.

Validation of the Hester Davis Scale for fall risk assessment in a neurosciences population.

Background And Purpose: Fall risk assessment is a necessary component of fall prevention programs. Accurate instruments to predict the risk of falling are paramount in identifying the correct patients in need of fall prevention measures. The purpose of this study was to prospectively validate the Hester Davis Scale (HDS) for fall risk assessment in an acute care setting in the South Central United States.

Falls in the community: state of the science.

Falls and fall-related injuries among older community-dwelling adults continue to be a major health concern in the US. Falls are the leading cause of disability and trauma-related death in persons over 65 years of age. This article discusses current approaches in community fall management and challenges with these approaches, and offers some insight for community providers regarding this issue.