Post-hoc validation of the Conley Scale in predicting the risk of falling with older in-hospital medical patients: findings from a multicentre longitudinal study.

Background: The Conley Scale is one of the most widespread fall-risk screening tools in medical unit settings, despite the lack of data regarding its validity in patients currently admitted to these units.

Aims: Establishing the validity of the Conley Scale in identifying patients at risk of falling in an acute medical setting.

Methods: A 6-months longitudinal study in 12 acute medical units from September 2012 to March 2013, a total of 1464 patients with ≥65 years of age were consecutively enrolled and evaluated with the Conley Scale within 24 h of admission.