Decreasing Falls by Improving Patient Self-Perception of Fall Risk

Despite many mitigation tactics, falls continue to be a problem at University of; Utah Health. This pattern was noted on a 40-bed inpatient acute care unit, where patient falls; rates increased even with general fall education. This education lacked the assessment of a; patient's self-perception of their fall risk and the connection of fall risk factors to their current; clinical status. Accordingly, this quality improvement project aims to decrease falls by changing; patients' perceptions of their fall risk and increasing their engagement in fall prevention. The; patients of this project received education aimed at bridging their knowledge gap and increasing; their engagement in falls prevention. Data were collected on the patient's baseline Johns Hopkins Fall Risk Assessment Tool (JHFRAT) score, followed by their perceived fall risk and; likelihood to call for ambulation assistance pre- and post-education. In the three-month; implementation period, patients' ability to accurately align their fall risk perception with their; JHFRAT score and their likeliness to call for assistance significantly increased. A subsequent; decrease in fall rates was statistically significant when comparing the intervention area against; two like units. Improving patient perception of their fall risk and increasing engagement in fall; prevention education can mitigate patient falls.