""""""""PATIENTS SLIP/FALLS: EVALUATION AND PREVENTION"""""""" is a two year research project designed to 1) study patients who have slip/fall incidents during their hospitalization; 2) compare those patients who have had slip/falls with patients who do not experience a slip/fall in order to develop a model(s) of patients who are at risk to slip/fall; 3) identify internal and external factors which put patients ar risk for slip/falls; 4) develop and implement a hospitalwide program based on the research in order to reduce the evidence of slipfalls; and 5) re-evaluate the incidence of slip/fall and characteristics of slip/fallers in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the slip/fall prevention program. Patient slip/falls are serious problems in general hospitals and result in significant patient morbility and increased lengths of stay. Slip/falls are costly to patients and institutions. Some characteristics of slip/fallers are understood, but it is not well known why people slip/fall and how they differ from those people who do not slip/falls during hospitalization. It is likely that a myriad of interacting internal and external variables contribute to the risk for slip/falls. There is no doubt that the quality of health care delivery and patient welfare can be improved if there is better understanding about the problem. An estimated population of 700 slip/fallers will be studied during a six month period. An equal number of patients who do not slip/fall will be studied in this case-control study. Chart audit, staff and patient interviews and neurologic assessment will generate data on approximately 30 variables in order to characterize who is at risk to slip/falls and why. Multivariate analysis will be carried out to determine how several factors, alone or in combination, contribute to the risk of slip/fallers. Based on these data, an intervention-prevention program will be developed for hospitalwide dissemination. Data will be collected on the slip/fallers and an equal number of non slip/fallers for three months following program implementation to evaluate the effectiveness of the program. This study will be conducted at the Moses Division of the Montefiore Medical Center, and 810 bed tertiary major patient care, teaching and research center. Results of this study will be shared nationally and will have relevance to acute care hospitals and other institutions in which patient slip/falls occur.
