Fall Prevention Among Elderly Americans

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Table of Contents

Introduction
A Comparison of Research Questions
A Comparison of Sample Populations
A Comparison of the Limitations of the Study
Conclusion and Recommendations for Research
References

Introduction

Recently, the number of falls increased among old people in the United States of America. Many reasons cause this problem. Therefore, nurses are obliged to know and address various methods of fall prevention. The following paper is intended to analyze peer-reviewed articles on the topic of fall prevention to develop effective treatment methods.

A Comparison of Research Questions

The scholars that address the theme of fall prevention in old people discuss different approaches and solutions to this problem. Moreover, every author identifies his or her unique methods of treating patients with possibilities of falls. For instance, contributors of one article stress that it is essential for old people to be aware of their health issues and discuss their vision biases with professionals who might offer adequate medical procedures to reduce further possibilities of falls (Stenhagen, Ekström, Nordell, & Elmståhl, 2014).

Another article says that relatives, who see that their grandparents or parents need support while walking, should immediately set an appointment with a therapist (Mitchell, Lavenberg, Trotta, & Umscheid, 2014). It is also important to know what medicaments old people use because some by-effects or overdoses caused by particular drugs can lead to continuous falls as well.

However, another article’s research question was intended to identify factors hindering fall prevention (Healey & Darowski, 2012). Although this topic does not seem as important as previous articles, there are a plethora of factors that hinder fall prevention. One of the most prevalent issues lays in people’s unwillingness to undergo necessary healing processes. The next article discusses the question that evaluates the effectiveness of hourly rounding by nurses as medical workers are obliged to check people with fall possibilities once an hour (Mitchell et al., 2014). Due to such devices as call lights and video cameras, this strategy might not be efficient because nurses can be occupied with other important duties.

A Comparison of Sample Populations

As each region presents different factors and menaces to people’s health conditions, articles written by individuals from these areas identify a broad variety of reasons that cause falls in older generations. For instance, scholars who wrote one of the articles say that only individuals from sixty to ninety-three years old have more chances to fall than people of other ages (Stenhagen et al., 2014). Moreover, vulnerable populations and citizens with low living standards are estimated to have increased risks of falls, as their health conditions are not addressed by medical personnel due to high treatment expenses (Mitchell et al., 2014).

This problem is caused by poor diets, psychological factors, alcohol or drug addictions, and other similar factors that influence one’s coordination and brain activity. Also, people’s environment might hurt their health. For instance, if a person lives in a polluted area in his or her seventies, various toxic evaporations may affect one’s brain activity after a certain period that might also lead to constant falls (Healey & Darowski, 2012). Another common reason for the issue mentioned above may emerge due to patients’ loneliness, as there is no one near to help them cope with their physical inabilities to coordinate body moves correctly.

A Comparison of the Limitations of the Study

The study of falls prevention has certain limitations. Some of them are not addressed by nurse practitioners, as they seem insignificant at first. Therefore, some limitations that will be discussed below might not be serious, but their impact on the study’s progress sometimes presents particular issues (Stenhagen et al., 2014). One of the most popular problems of the study discussed above lies in doctors’ and nurses’ inability to examine patients and find precise reasons that influence constant falls.

Every patient has unique health problems that affect one’s coordination (Mitchell et al., 2014). People with mental issues might also have various biases that can lead to falls. Reasons for similar accidents may be unknown even after medical examinations. Such people usually have problems with explaining their complaints and sharing their thoughts with others. Therefore, accurate research is impossible due to the lack of information provided by a patient.

Another limitation of the falls prevention study is presented by differing symptoms in patients, as almost every person has diverse issues that affect his or her ability to hold one’s body balance and coordinate properly (Healey & Darowski, 2012). Unfortunately, falls in old people emerge due to such problems as poor vision, chronic conditions, environment, and other similar factors. The wide range of reasons that have a significant influence on human’s ability to walk without falling is tremendous. Therefore, it is hard to make and implement unique solutions to this problem, as certain methods might work for one group of patients, whereas other people may not benefit from them.

Conclusion and Recommendations for Research

The study of falls prevention in old people in the United States of America is critical nowadays due to the increased number of medical cases related to it. Various scholars, nurse practitioners, and doctors develop and implement their theories that are intended to prevent falls in their hospitals and to reduce the possibility of further problems with patients’ balancing abilities. However, the study discussed above has certain limitations that present obstacles to accurate results and conclusions by medical personnel.

It would be proper to state that further researches of the falls prevention study have to address such factors as the lack of young nurses’ professional knowledge, the proper use of ambulation assistance, and communication among health care teams. Moreover, it is essential to make specific checklists for hourly rounding. These checklists must include all the necessary points to observe and investigate during every rounding.

References

Healey, F., & Darowski, A. (2012). Older patients and falls in hospital. Clinical Risk, 18(5), 170-176.

Mitchell, M. D., Lavenberg, J. G., Trotta, R. L., & Umscheid, C. A. (2014). Hourly rounding to improve nursing responsiveness. JONA: The Journal of Nursing Administration, 44(9), 462-472. Web.

Stenhagen, M., Ekström, H., Nordell, E., & Elmståhl, S. (2014). Accidental falls, health-related quality of life and life satisfaction: A prospective study of the general elderly population. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 58(1), 95-100. Web.

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