Fall Prevention and Injury Protection for Nursing Home Residents

Recognizing that risk factors for falls are multifactorial and interacting, providers require guidance on the components, intensity, dose, and duration for an effective fall and fall injury prevention program. Administrators of health care facilities require guidance on resources needed for these programs. Clear guidance does not exist for specifying the right combination of interventions to adequately protect specific at-risk populations, such as nursing home residents with dementia or osteoporosis. Staff education about fall prevention and resident fall risk assessment and reassessments has become part of standards of practice; however, the selection, specificity, and combination of fall prevention and injury protection interventions are not standardized. To address these gaps, this team of researchers conducted a critical examination of selected intervention studies relevant to nursing home populations. The objectives of this literature review were to (1) examine the selection and specificity of fall prevention and injury protection interventions described in the literature since 1990; (2) evaluate the strength of evidence for interventions that both prevent falls and protect residents from fall-related injury; and, (3) provide clinical and policy guidance to integrate specific interventions into practice. (J Am Med Dir Assoc 2010; 11: 284-293)