On July 14, falls expert Dr. Patricia Quigley presented the “Safe Mobility is Fall Prevention” webinar, the first of four educational opportunities related to preventing and treating injuries resulting from falls.
The session drew 60 participants from Wisconsin hospitals and health systems, including patient safety specialists, registered nurse managers, regulation specialists, quality improvement specialists and physical therapists.
Quigley noted the importance of understanding and managing the risk of falls. She cautioned that when managing risk factors, it is not enough to look only at the patient’s fall risk. It is important, too, Quigley said, to look at the patient’s interaction with his or her environment, a major contributor to falls.
Quigley encouraged attendees to look at the age distribution of their hospitals’ populations over the last year, noting that data shows people older than 75 frequently sustain injury with a fall, while those 85 and older sustain significant injuries that lead to death more often than in younger patients. She also emphasized the differences between screening and assessment, highlighting the importance of knowing population determinants of vulnerability such as age, cognition, fall history and comorbidities.
The falls webinar series continues with the following events.
Best Practices to Reduce Falls Associated with Toileting
Webinar: Aug. 18
12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
Coaching Session: Sept. 1
12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
Redesigning Post-Fall Management
Webinar: Sept. 15
12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
Coaching Session: Sept. 29
11 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Program Evaluation: Reengineering Fall and Fall Injury Programs (Infrastructure, Capacity and Sustainability)
Webinar: Oct. 13
12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
Coaching Session: Oct. 27
12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
This webinar series is sponsored by Wisconsin Office of Rural Health. All webinars and coaching sessions are offered at no cost. Click
here for more information.