Falls

Falls are a high-volume, high-risk, high-cost challenge for healthcare facilities—particularly for continuing care and aging services organizations. In addition to the serious injuries and costs associated with falls, organizations risk financial consequences if they do not have measures in place to prevent falls. Injuries from falls can result in lawsuits against organizations. Additionally, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, as well as state agencies, may impose monetary penalties against organizations that have not established effective measures to prevent falls and have one or more residents who are seriously injured or harmed from a fall.

ECRI recommends that organizations implement comprehensive falls prevention programs and conduct periodic reviews to evaluate the effectiveness of their falls prevention activities, including their assessment protocols for identification of residents for falls risks; for interventions; and for education of staff, residents, and their families. This self-assessment questionnaire (SAQ) can be used to assess...