Alves, R. C., Colichi, R. M. B., & Lima, S. A. M. (2023). Technological strategies aimed at fall prevention in hospital environments: An integrative review. Acta Paulista de Enfermagem, 36, eAPE01462. https://doi.org/10.37689/acta-ape/2023AR014622
This integrative review by Alves et al. (2023) examines technological fall prevention strategies in healthcare settings, synthesizing 19 studies from 2017 to 2022. It reveals diverse tools such as environmental devices, wearable devices, and software applications that are useful in effectively mitigating the risk of falls. Significant findings indicate that technological devices such as the bed-exit alarm, pressure-sensing devices, and motion-sensing devices are useful in substantially enhancing the safety of patients. Educational technology, such as applications and risk screening tools, is useful in improving fall prevention initiatives. This guide may inform nurses of the need to integrate technology into their fall prevention protocols. It familiarizes them with how diverse technological tools may enhance fall assessment, minimize the workload of the nursing staff, and ensure a safer working healthcare facility. Nurses may utilize this guide to advocate for and integrate relevant technological strategies in practice, especially in facilities with patients who have a high fall risk, such as intensive care settings and geriatric facilities.
Cooper, K., Pavlova, A., Greig, L., Swinton, P., Kirkpatrick, P., Mitchelhill, F., & Alexander, L. (2021). Health technologies for the prevention and detection of falls in adult hospital inpatients: A scoping review. JBI Evidence Synthesis, 19(10), 2478-2658. https://doi.org/10.11124/JBIES-20-00114
This article by Cooper et al. (2021) offers an extensive summary of prevailing technologies applied to fall detection and prevention in hospitals. It looks into more than 13,000 records and examines numerous health technologies, including wearable sensors, alarm devices, and environmental changes. The article further details clinical effectiveness, feasibility, and acceptability information and provides information on how such technologies may influence fall rates in hospitals. Nurses can use this resource better to understand the available technologies for fall prevention and detection. It provides evidence on what works and identifies research gaps, helping nurses implement evidence-based practices. Nurses will be equipped with information on both existing tools and emerging technologies that can enhance patient safety. This resource is beneficial for nurses involved in patient safety initiatives. It can be used during staff education, when evaluating existing technologies, or while planning fall prevention programs. The scoping review format helps nurses integrate these findings into practical, daily routines for enhanced patient outcomes.
Pati, D., Valipoor, S., Lorusso, L., Mihandoust, S., Jamshidi, S., Rane, A., & Kazem-Zadeh, M. (2021). The impact of the built environment on patient falls in hospital rooms: An integrative review. Journal of Patient Safety, 17(4), 273-281. https://doi.org/10.1097/PTS.0000000000000613
In this integrative review, Pati et al. (2021) analyze how hospital room design influences patient falls, considering important physical features like room layout, bed height, bathroom design, flooring, and furniture arrangement. The review synthesizes 30 studies, classifying them according to quality of evidence and applicability. It identifies a number of environmental contributors to fall hazards, including bedrail design, room size, and bathroom door locations. Nurses may draw upon this resource to better understand how environmental design influences fall hazard occurrence and integrate this information into point-of-care safety assessments. Through their implementation of evidence-based design enhancements like bed height adjustment, judicious placement of grab bars, and room space optimization, nurse leaders may effectively optimize patient safety. This resource is beneficial for efforts aimed at fall prevention in hospital units and can be consulted during safety audits or when redesigning patient units.