Major Predictors of Inpatient Falls: A Multisite Study.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this secondary data analysis was to identify key factors predictive of falls in hospitals. BACKGROUND Patient falls remain a major concern for hospitals. Falls can increase patient morbidity/mortality and increase legal risk/cost for institutions. While a number of high-risk falls assessments are available, key predictors of falls have not been identified. METHODS A secondary data analysis was performed on 281,865 high-risk falls assessments collected in a multisite study. RESULTS For the total sample, logistic regression analyses demonstrated that 3 factors, falls within the past 6 months (OR=2.98), confusion (odds ratio, 2.05), taking a laxative (odds ratio, 1.54), are strong predictors of falling. Similar results were found for individual hospitals, different units within hospitals, and urban versus rural hospital locations. CONCLUSION Findings suggest that assessments of fall risk should heavily weigh the 3 predictors identified in this study. Another approach would be to intervene based on these predictors.