Inpatients' experiences of falls: A qualitative meta-synthesis.
Rebecca J Jarden, Katherine Cherry, Emma Sparham and 7 others
PMID 38808473WHAT IT FOUND
Patients who fell in hospital often misjudged their balance, avoided calling nurses, and could not find or reach the call bell.
They then feared walking independently. Ask why they did not call for help.
Key findings
01Patients described falls happening when their body did not respond as expected during routine activities, with loss of balance or strength and misjudged capability.
02Patients did not always ask for help because they wanted independence and did not want to disturb nurses.
03Finding or accessing call bells and other necessary items was problematic and could prevent patients from getting help.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The review included only English-language published studies, so experiences from other languages or settings may be missing. Quality appraisal was done, but studies were not excluded for low quality, and some included studies had weak reporting. It synthesized patient experiences after falls, so it does not show whether any intervention prevents falls. The included studies used different designs and settings, and participant samples ranged from 5 to 100, so findings may not apply to every inpatient group.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the four themes as evidence that any fall-prevention intervention works. The review reports what patients said after falling, not whether changing call bells, education, or nurse response prevented falls.