Proposing a fall risk prevention checklist for an Oncology unit
Abstract (300 words maximum)
Oncology patients are considered a high risk population for falls. Chemotherapy, medications, fatigue, physical decline, and insomnia are all common risk factors of falls for adult patients with cancer. Falls are the second leading cause of unintentional injuries and death. The overall purpose of this project is to propose an intervention that could be implemented onto a medical oncology unit, in order to decrease the occurrence of patient falls. This intervention will not be conducted, but will be supported by previous studies and data. Multiple studies have been conducted on implementing new or different fall prevention methods in oncology units to determine how to effectively decrease the incidence of falls. While these studies have shown effective results, there needs to be a positive organizational culture and the presence of teamwork among the unit staff and hospital leadership in order to implement these changes. Falls will always occur on a hospital floor, but developing methods to help decrease the rates are important to the health of current and future patients. This project proposes the implementation of a fall prevention checklist on an oncology unit. The fall prevention checklist would include safety measures and prevention methods based on hospital protocols, for nurses and care partners to complete during their shift. The staff will communicate the completion of the checklist during their handoff reports at shift change. The outcome and effectiveness of this intervention would be analyzed over 6 months by gathering data based on the nurses who utilized the checklist and comparing their use with the number of falls that have occured on the unit.
Academic department under which the project should be listed
WCHHS - Nursing
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
Christie Emerson
Proposing a fall risk prevention checklist for an Oncology unit
Oncology patients are considered a high risk population for falls. Chemotherapy, medications, fatigue, physical decline, and insomnia are all common risk factors of falls for adult patients with cancer. Falls are the second leading cause of unintentional injuries and death. The overall purpose of this project is to propose an intervention that could be implemented onto a medical oncology unit, in order to decrease the occurrence of patient falls. This intervention will not be conducted, but will be supported by previous studies and data. Multiple studies have been conducted on implementing new or different fall prevention methods in oncology units to determine how to effectively decrease the incidence of falls. While these studies have shown effective results, there needs to be a positive organizational culture and the presence of teamwork among the unit staff and hospital leadership in order to implement these changes. Falls will always occur on a hospital floor, but developing methods to help decrease the rates are important to the health of current and future patients. This project proposes the implementation of a fall prevention checklist on an oncology unit. The fall prevention checklist would include safety measures and prevention methods based on hospital protocols, for nurses and care partners to complete during their shift. The staff will communicate the completion of the checklist during their handoff reports at shift change. The outcome and effectiveness of this intervention would be analyzed over 6 months by gathering data based on the nurses who utilized the checklist and comparing their use with the number of falls that have occured on the unit.