TY - JOUR
T1 - Documenting fall episodes
T2 - a scoping review
AU - Pernes, Mafalda
AU - Agostinho, Inês
AU - Bernardes, Rafael A.
AU - Belo Fernandes, Júlio
AU - Baixinho, Cristina Lavareda
N1 - Copyright © 2023 Pernes, Agostinho, Bernardes, Belo Fernandes and Baixinho.
PY - 2023
Y1 - 2023
N2 - Documentation is an important measure for the management of fall risk because it concentrates the attention of professionals, raises awareness of the existence of fall risk factors, and promotes action to eliminate or minimize them. This study aimed to map the evidence on information to document episodes of falls in older adults. We opted for a scoping review, which followed the Joanna Briggs Institute protocol for this kind of study. The research question that guided the research strategy was “What recommendations emerge from the research on the documentation of falls of the older person?” The inclusion criteria defined were older adults who had at least one fall; nursing documentation after a fall has occurred; and nursing homes, hospitals, community, and long-term care. The search was performed on the following platforms: MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews in January 2022 and allowed the identification of 854 articles, which after analysis resulted in a final sample of six articles. The documentation of fall episodes should answer the following questions: Who? What? When? Where? How? Doing what? What was said? What were the consequences? and What has been done? Despite the recommendations for the documentation of fall episodes as a preventive measure for their recurrence, there are no studies evaluating the cost-effectiveness of this measure. Future studies should explore the association between fall documentation, fall recurrence prevention programs, and their impact on the prevalence rate of the second and subsequent falls, as well as the severity of injuries and fear of falling.
AB - Documentation is an important measure for the management of fall risk because it concentrates the attention of professionals, raises awareness of the existence of fall risk factors, and promotes action to eliminate or minimize them. This study aimed to map the evidence on information to document episodes of falls in older adults. We opted for a scoping review, which followed the Joanna Briggs Institute protocol for this kind of study. The research question that guided the research strategy was “What recommendations emerge from the research on the documentation of falls of the older person?” The inclusion criteria defined were older adults who had at least one fall; nursing documentation after a fall has occurred; and nursing homes, hospitals, community, and long-term care. The search was performed on the following platforms: MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews in January 2022 and allowed the identification of 854 articles, which after analysis resulted in a final sample of six articles. The documentation of fall episodes should answer the following questions: Who? What? When? Where? How? Doing what? What was said? What were the consequences? and What has been done? Despite the recommendations for the documentation of fall episodes as a preventive measure for their recurrence, there are no studies evaluating the cost-effectiveness of this measure. Future studies should explore the association between fall documentation, fall recurrence prevention programs, and their impact on the prevalence rate of the second and subsequent falls, as well as the severity of injuries and fear of falling.
KW - accidental falls
KW - aged
KW - clinical audit
KW - documentation
KW - recurrent falls
KW - risk
KW - Humans
KW - Risk Factors
KW - Accidental Falls/prevention & control
KW - Fear
KW - Hospitals
KW - Systematic Reviews as Topic
KW - Aged
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85159867883&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1067243
DO - 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1067243
M3 - Review article
C2 - 37200991
AN - SCOPUS:85159867883
SN - 2296-2565
VL - 11
SP - 1067243
JO - Frontiers in Public Health
JF - Frontiers in Public Health
M1 - 1067243
ER -