Fall Prevention

[JNUR20]

What are you all doing on your units for fall prevention? Aside from fall risk wristbands, mag and bed alarms, alerts posted on the doors, fall risk scores, sitters, patients sitting at the nurses station and education - any other ideas?

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

Restraints... although I work in an ICU so we have more leeway with those, vs settings like LTC.

What is staffing like? Honestly if staffing is inappropriate, all the yellow wrist bands in the world won't prevent falls.

[caffeinatednurse, BSN, RN]

In LTC, we move them to a room closer to the nursing station, do frequent rounds, and have a sitter stay with them. Call bell within reach at all times, and sometimes that means actually clipping it to their clothes or wheelchair. Keep the door open at all times, unless a CNA is providing care. Lower the bed to a comfortable height for the resident to stand/transfer, but still low enough to prevent more serious injury. Bed alarms and chair alarms are okay, but a lot of the time, they agitate an already confused patient. I prefer the lap belts that hook to wheelchairs, but they also have drawbacks. They're still better than nothing, I suppose. Fall mats to prevent serious injury, especially with those residents that are non-compliant and will get up anyway. No fall risk bands, since virtually everyone in LTC is a fall risk.