Falls (kinda long, sorry!)

Goldenhare · Oct 12, 2006

Yikes! Don't be so hard on yourself! It is sometimes hard to predict pt behavior. You could try making a 'safety' contract with her and tell her that you will check on her every ___minutes and that she should be prepared to tell you about any concerns she is having at that time or anything that she wants. Possibly you might be able to bribe her. If she is allowed, could you say to her that you will give her some pudding or graham crackers or whatever if she stays in bed a set amount of time. I haven't had to resort to bribery-yet (and for those of you who might fuss and say that you shouldn't bride pts or children of husbands for that matter-I ask you this. What is a paycheck? A bribe for showing up Right? :chuckle ) I have found it useful to tell pts that I will be back between say 2100-2130, and they seem to respond well to that. I guess they don't feel ignored then. If they don't hold up there end of the bargain, then you can ask them why not and modify the contract.

adrienurse, LPN · Oct 12, 2006

Yes, you're being very very hard on yourself. We are nurses and there are only somethings that we're able to control. We cannot stop all falls, and we cannot force people to take our advice or follow directions.

The best thing for your to do (I think anyway) is to spend some time learning about what causes falls and how they are best prevented. Too many nurses do not have a good understanding of this. So Here's some information that will help to boost your confidence:

http://www.health.qld.gov.au/fallsprevention/best_practice/default.asp

http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/seniors-aines/pubs/best_practices/intro_e.htm

http://www.rnao.org/bestpractices/PDF/BPG_Prevent_Falls.pdf#search=%22falls%20prevention%20best%20practice%22

1st edition · Oct 12, 2006

After you advise her to ask for help by way of using call lights and whatever other methods your facility uses chart that she was advised to not transfer self w/out assit and verbalized understanding. CHART that every time. Cover yourself. If she contiues to "fall" then you are protected and your butt is covered w/ documentation.

barbyann · Oct 12, 2006

This situation is not a fall. It was not witnessed. She was "found on floor". There is big difference. Also pt stated "she sat down".

I would have her on bed alarm from now on. Don't over think this one. Sounds like she has had these issues for awhile.

miko014 · Oct 12, 2006

I think I would be upset no matter what, but I am ticked off at her! I really think she did it on purpose because she thought that I wasn't going to bring her her meds, even though the last time I had been in the room (maybe 30 min before), I had told her when I was bringing them, and I had them with me when I found her.

I did chart it, believe me! And to my knowledge, this is her first fall in the hospital...she did fall a lot at home, and when I talked to her husband he just said "Oh my GOD" in a really exasperated tone (sounded about how I felt!) and said thanks for letting him know. I don't think he was upset with me, I think he was frustrated with her. I won't know until I go back, I guess.

Oh and she said that she "sat down HARD".

Antikigirl, ASN, RN · Oct 12, 2006

Man have I seen this scenero a few times...sheesh! I have had pts actually put themselves on the ground to illicit a responce of many people to tend to a need instead of waiting...because they feel they won't get help otherwise (same tactic as used by pts saying they have higher pain levels than normal so they can get medication feeling that if they say a lower number they won't get it...I tell my pts to tell me the low end times so it can take less medicine, spaced well, and control before it gets large!).

Do not feel down on yourself...even if legit it is not your fault if a person gets out of bed despite being told the risks! Some people also have a very bad time with realistic views of time itself. Some folks feel that two minutes is 30 minutes and so on...and will get up after two minutes feeling it had been 30 or more to 'do it themselves'. Can't help that...but it is an underlying probelm you can try to work with! (I have given folks stop watches!).

Despite what we are told...you can not prevent all falls! You can lower the risk, be there promptly when it happens to initiate care for injury...but not completely take falls out of the picture (unless pts are tied up!!!).

All we are expected to do, and can do is lower the risks as much as possible by using implementations available (and trial and error!), and being there quickly if one was to occur (the biggest fear of pts and of nurses is not the fall as much as a pt down for long periods of time unattended to~! So put these into perspective for yourself rationally!).

To tell you the truth...I am even scared of falls myself. I fell last week walking on a gravel road that just had its first rain. People teased me for it and told me I will be in a home at 50! I would giggle, but what a scary thought! I think we need a little more reality when it comes to falls...that or change gravity? LOL!

I have broken both ankles as a child and not the most graceful of folks...so I am prone to trips or falls (especially in cold weather...my ankles feel locked up). It scares me that nurses will forbid me to walk unless assisted and suggest a care home...to me that would be the end (as it is for many people..think about that when you deal with pts that are on activity limitations post fall...that is a freedom we are taking away for their safety yes...but may not be rational to the pt and they may feel..."oh boy...I fell...to the home I go!").

So don't put yourself down...just be there for pts, try to prevent it, and be quick to help if possible (and sometimes that isn't possible and you really must depend on a good staff to help). Put a bit of human reality into the picture...we fall...darn that gravity stuff! LOL!

ArmyMSN · Oct 12, 2006

There are nursing textbooks dedicated just to falls and falls prevention. Its down to a science where you can predict patients at high risk. There are a few assessments that every patient in my hospital gets (Morse is one, I think) and falls precautions are implemented - doesn't take much to be on precautions. Having a PCA pump or IV pump, history of previous falls including at home, multiple meds (including narcs/anxiolytics), eyeglasses, dementia, etc. It seems like everyone of our surgical patients needed to be on special falls precautions with the screenign tool we use (we end up putting up signs (hipaa?), bed alarms, communicating fall risk in change of shift reports).

I used to have to investigate and report why falls occurred on our unit, and usually my personnal conclusion was that the unit was understaffed, too many admissions/post-ops were returning at once - and rarely was it the nurses's fault. Most of the time it was a system's problem (like most medication errors, too).

Having one patient fall on your watch makes you very diligent to keep from having it happen again. But what used to burn me up was if the same patient fell more than once during the same hospitalization. Then you start to wonder if we nurses even talk to each other about these kinds of things at change of shift.

Sorry to see that it happened to your patient. Sounds like you're very conscientious and will learn a lot from the experience.

Goldenhare · Oct 13, 2006

After you advise her to ask for help by way of using call lights and whatever other methods your facility uses chart that she was advised to not transfer self w/out assit and verbalized understanding. CHART that every time. Cover yourself. If she contiues to "fall" then you are protected and your butt is covered w/ documentation.

:yeahthat:

miko014 · Oct 13, 2006

I have been charting EVERYTHING on her, believe me! It seems that the general consensus on the unit (MDs, nurses, case managers, even her family) think it's an attention thing (like I said, she has a history of "falls"). Which is weird since my tech was in that room 5 minutes before I was. I have had this pt again and it has been hard for me, but I have managed to keep her under control. I don't deny that she has pain, but it seems to most of us that she has pain and anxiety. She will start to feel the pain and then just freak out and get herself so worked up that the next thing you know she is screaming and carryng on (like a child, as I said before). I have had adult pts who were in so much pain that they cried, and I have never seen anything like this. She acts like a 4 year old at the grocery store when Mommy says "no" to candy. The thing is, her bt is q1h, plus scheduled q3h and q12h, and they added tons of anxiety and psych meds! We never say no! If she can't have her pain meds, she gets her anxiety meds! So I am not as upset as I was, but just shaking my head now. Thank you all for your support!

jill48, ASN, RN · Nov 5, 2006

I have been an LPN for 11years. Some of that time was spent in med/surg, but most of it spent in geriatrics. Falls are almost a daily occurence. We are told now that "patients have the right to fall"; how insane is that? Do what you can to keep them safe, but you can't predict or prevent every fall. Make sure the call light is always within reach. Bed rails up when ordered. One trick I've learned over the years is if you have a patient sitting up in a wheelchair who likes to try to get up by herself, put a a bedside table in front of her. Now here is where it gets tricky, because if you put an empty table in front of her, it's considered a restraint. But if you put something on that table to keep her busy, its just a table, not a restraint. :idea: Older, confused ladies like to fold washclothes, so I put a pile of washclothes on the table and they start folding. Just check on her every few minutes to make sure they are not all folded or she will get bored again. Some patients like to color. I make copies of my kids' coloring books and keep them in my locker for this reason, plus some crayons. Or you can giver her a snack on that table. Once a patient does fall, my staff knows not to move her until I assess her. Obviously you are looking for bruising and stuff like that, but an easy way to assess for a broken hip is to extend both legs while the patient is lying on her back. This accomplishes two things: first, look at the ankles and if one leg is rotated in or out, there is a problem; second, if one leg is shorter than the other there is a problem. This is not the be all end all of the assessment, but it's a quick way to check for the displaced hip. In your charting, chart where she was found, how she was found, who found her, what time she was found, what time she was last seen before the fall and her condition at that time, what she says about the fall when you ask her what happened (even if her answer makes no sense), any witnesses, any changes in condition after the fall or possible injuries, and most important - covering your butt. This entails charting that the last time you checked her her call light was in reach and and bed rails were up (if this is the case). Then begin with the calls; the doctor should not be surprised, this is a constant problem. And the family will just have to get over it. There's only so much you can do. I've had families who ask why I can't just sit with her for my entire shift and my answer is that I have other patients, but it would be okay with me if they want to come in and sit with her all day. And sometimes they do. Hopefullly at your facility you use the fall risk forms that will help you to keep track of possible causes for the fall such as psychotropic meds or things like that to look at. Good luck to you, I'm sure you will get used to this sad, everyday, sometimes unpreventable occurence.