Who Is Most at Risk for Patient Falls?
The reality is, any patient can be at risk for falling. But there are risk factors that put some patients more at risk than others. These include patients who are:
- 65 years old and over3
- Experiencing urgency/frequency/incontinence with bowel or urine elimination1,2
- Taking high fall risk drugs like PCA/opiates, sedatives, etc.1,2
- Tethered to patient care equipment (IV, chest tube, indwelling catheter, etc.)
- A mobility risk unsteady gait, amputees/limb loss, visual or auditory impairment1,2
- Cognition impaired altered awareness of physical environment, impulsiveness, lack of understanding of one’s physical and cognitive limitations2