The rate of patient falls in hospitals that submit data to the National Database for Nursing Quality Indicators was studied for the time period mid-2006 through 2010 with the objective of trying to identify hospital characteristics associated with low, medium, or high patient falls. This is a direct quote:
The overall mean … fall rate for all observations in the data set was 3.65 … falls per 1,000 patient days. (page 365)
The authors found that characteristics associated with hospitals with better performance on the patient falls rate included:
- Larger bed size (over 300 beds)
- Magnet status
- Higher total nursing hours per patient day
However, nursing skill mix was not found to have a statistically significant effect on the patient fall rate.
Source: Everhart, D., Shumaker, J.R., and others. (2014, October-December). Determinants of hospital fall rate trajectory groups: a longitudinal assessment of nurse staffing and organizational characteristics. Health Care Management Review. 39(4), 352-360. Click here for access to the publisher’s website: http://journals.lww.com/hcmrjournal/Abstract/2014/10000/Determinants_of_hospital_fall_rate_trajectory.9.aspx Posted by AHA Resource Center (312) 422-2050, rc@aha.org
Filed under: Patient safety, Posted by Kim Garber | Tagged: Hospital patient fall rate, Hospital patient falls |
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