Abstract

Patients have ethical and legal rights to expect their environment is safe when they are hospitalized. A component of environmental safety is the duty of hospitals to anticipate the occurrence of patient falls and make reasonable efforts to prevent them. Falls during hospitalization radically increase physical, mental, and practical costs for patients, caregivers and hospitals. Elderly hospitalized patients with mental health disorders present a particularly difficult challenge for prevention advocates. This writer introduces a newly developed fall risk assessment tool called the Fall Geriatric Assessment and Intervention Tool (FALL GAIT). The FALL GAIT links patient fall risk factors with evidence-based multifactorial interventions for inclusion on patient treatment plans. The FALL GAIT may prove to be a valuable tool for reducing the rates of falls for elderly hospitalized patients with mental health disorders.

Author Details

Joseph Giancola, MSN, JD, RN

Sigma Membership

Omicron Delta

Type

Article

Format Type

Text-based Document

Study Design/Type

Other

Research Approach

Other

Keywords:

Falls, Elderly, Mental Health, Fall Prevention, Fall Intervention

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All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.

Review Type

Peer-review: Single Blind

Acquisition

Self-submission

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