Document Type
DNP Project
Publication Date
4-2025
Degree Name
Doctor of Nursing Practice
Faculty Advisor
Dr. Rosemary Johnson, DNP, APRN, ANP-BC
Practice Mentor
Melissa Meyer, BSN, DNP
Abstract
Background
Patient falls are amongst the most preventable yet costly accidents that occur in an inpatient setting. Research has shown that falls are the most common causes of traumatic brain injuries and hip fractures, which can be detrimental, especially to the aging population. Furthermore, inpatient falls pose a major financial burden on all hospital institutions worldwide. Interventions that have proved to decrease fall rates involve a combination of patient and staff education, proper footwear and accessibility to walking aids, and ensuring that alarms are active and audible, and the patient beds are in lowest position. Therefore, a combination approach to decreasing falls is perhaps more effective than implementing just 1 intervention.
Project Goals
- Provide education through an information flyer to staff members over a 1-week period on fall metrics and the importance of fall prevention.
- Implement a fall prevention checklist and assess adherence to checklist over a 1-month period.
- Compare rates of falls prior to implementation of the checklist (30 days) to rates of falls 30 days after implementation.
Methods
A volunteer-based fall prevention checklist and a falls educational flyer were created and implemented on a 26-bed, adult inpatient unit on a heart and vascular floor. The project framework utilized the Iowa Model for Evidence-Based Practice and continuous PDSA cycles.
Results
The strongest compliance areas (100%) were patient beds were in the lowest position, pathways to the bathrooms were clear, patients could reach their call bells and verbalized understanding of when and how to use them, and education was provided to all patients assessed. Despite education, the TIPS boards were completed less than half of the time, at 45%. There were 2 patient falls overnight, occurring in the timeframe that volunteers were not utilizing the checklist and rounding.
Conclusion
A fall prevention checklist combined with education for both patients and staff members has the potential to decrease patient falls and increase patient safety.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Lam, A. (2025). Fighting falls on an inpatient cardiovascular unit: A quality improvement project [Unpublished DNP project]. Sacred Heart University. https://digitalcommons.sacredheart.edu/dnp_projects/87
Comments
A DNP project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Nursing Practice, Sacred Heart University Davis & Henley College of Nursing.