Impact of Hearing Loss on Patient Falls in the Inpatient Setting.

Introduction: The objectives of this study were to investigate an association between the risk of patient falls and self-reported hearing loss and to examine whether self-reported hearing loss with versus without hearing aids predicts patient falls in an inpatient setting.

Methods: This retrospective cohort analysis was conducted in 2018 in a large, urban, academic medical center. Participants included unique inpatients (N=52,805) of adults aged >18 years between February 1, 2017, and February 1, 2018.

Patient Activation Related to Fall Prevention: A Multisite Study.

Background: Falls are a major problem in hospitals. The fall prevention program Fall TIPS (Tailoring Interventions for Patient Safety) has been shown to be effective in preventing inpatient falls and related injuries. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the Fall TIPS program on patient activation related to fall prevention.

Assessing the Effectiveness of Engaging Patients and Their Families in the Three-Step Fall Prevention Process Across Modalities of an Evidence-Based Fall Prevention Toolkit: An Implementation Science Study.

Background: Patient falls are a major problem in hospitals. The development of a Patient-Centered Fall Prevention Toolkit, Fall TIPS (Tailoring Interventions for Patient Safety), reduced falls by 25% in acute care hospitals by leveraging health information technology to complete the 3-step fall prevention process-(1) conduct fall risk assessments; (2) develop tailored fall prevention plans with the evidence-based interventions; and (3) consistently implement the plan. We learned that Fall TIPS was most effective when patients and family were engaged in all 3 steps of the fall prevention process.