Fall Risks & Prevention

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by Abigail Pena9 views·Updated Jul 31, 2021
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  1. Hi guys, my name is Abby.
  2. I'm a nurse in Elgin Illinois and I'm here to
  3. talk to you about falls, risk preventions and complications.
  4. First of all, who is that a risk for falls?
  5. We identify patients that are at a higher risk for
  6. falls determined by their age.
  7. We frequently see falls more frequently within the elderly population.
  8. Um As well as patients who have multiple diagnosis patients
  9. who are on new medications or are taking pain medications
  10. really. Any medication that can alter their mental status or
  11. their vital signs would uh write them as a higher
  12. risk for falls as well as patients with history of
  13. phones, complications related to false physical injury can occur after
  14. a fall.
  15. Um Broken bones, head injuries, cuts, scratches, bruises and wounds.
  16. Um Another complication could be bleeding, um bleeding externally.
  17. Um is something that we can identify and see um
  18. and we can put pressure on it to control the
  19. bleeding. Internal bleeding can sometimes not be as easily identified.
  20. So we want to make sure that we're doing the
  21. appropriate scans as needed and asking patients if they hit
  22. their head when they fell, if they lost any consciousness.
  23. Um And after the scan determine whether or not there
  24. is a bleed.
  25. We also do want to monitor their neuro status that
  26. they did hit their head um to make sure that
  27. they don't develop a ble that maybe wasn't caught by
  28. the scan.
  29. The pain would be a common complication after a fall
  30. and then the worst complication would be death.
  31. Fall prevention.
  32. So fall prevention in the hospital versus at home.
  33. Um So in the hospital we want to make sure
  34. that we're orienting the patient to the room.
  35. Obviously it's a new environment so we want to make
  36. sure that they're aware of what is where um That
  37. way we decrease the likelihood of a trip.
  38. Um We assist patients to the bathroom and we offer
  39. toilet infrequently.
  40. We also educate them on their specific risk factors for
  41. a full um what medications are taking, how that medication
  42. can possibly affect their balance there.
  43. Um vital signs make them dizzy, um or anything like
  44. that. We also encourage ambulance nation.
  45. Um We want to keep their strength up and not
  46. leave them in bed all day um and progressive mobility.
  47. So we use this um grid to help us identify
  48. um, their capabilities at the moment and we try to
  49. work with them to make sure that um we keep
  50. their strength up and that we're getting them up.
  51. If they are only able to dangle, we dangle them.
  52. If they're able to sit up in the chair, we
  53. want them sitting up in the chair for meals.
  54. Um And obviously if they're able to emulate, we would
  55. go out for walks.
  56. Um We also provide them grip socks um if they
  57. do not have any shoes.
  58. Um And then we utilize bed and chair alarms um
  59. in the event that they forget to call before getting
  60. up or if they fall out of bed fall out
  61. of the chair, were able to go in there and
  62. assist them.
  63. Um At home we want to make sure that patients
  64. are removing any rugs or carpet from the floor that
  65. could be a trip hazard um And for them to
  66. utilize handrails or grab bars whenever possible.
  67. We keep them active to maintain strength and we remove
  68. our secure things that can cause the slip.
  69. Um Both of them both settings, we would want to
  70. remove clutter from the floor um and then use the
  71. appropriate assist devices in the hospital.
  72. We use gait belt um which allows us to hang
  73. on to the patient without actually grabbing onto them.
  74. Um Should they trip or fall?
  75. Um We're able to use the gate belt to guide
  76. them down to the floor.
  77. Um to help prevent injury.
  78. Um We encourage people to get up slowly, especially when
  79. they are just starting new medications um to make sure
  80. that they do not get dizzy as they get up.
  81. Um We encourage appropriate lighting to make sure that they're
  82. aware of their surroundings and they know where they're stepping
  83. and also to have frequently used items within reach.
  84. I hope you guys enjoyed the presentation.
  85. Thank you so much.