Abstract Detail

Abstract

Falls in older adults are a safety issue in all healthcare settings, one measure of care quality, and the primary cause of unintended death among New Mexican adults aged 65 and older. Falls and fall-related interventions have been extensively investigated in acute and post-acute care settings. However, limited evidence exists regarding the priority placed on falls and fall reduction practices in assisted living communities. An estimated 3 million older adults are treated annually for fall-related injuries in U.S. emergency departments, and more than 800,000 are hospitalized, leading to increased healthcare costs, emergency room and hospital overcrowding, decreased quality of life, and premature death. Fall injuries not only lead to substantial morbidity and mortality, in 2015, $31.3 billion was spent on falls adults 65 years and older. With fall injury and related healthcare use expected to increase, understanding the priority of falls and current fall reduction practices in assisted living communities will be essential in guiding future fall risk assessment and reduction practices in the aging assisted and community-dwelling adult population.

Biography

Dr. Barbara De Groot graduated in 1992 with her associate degree in nursing and holds a  Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from the University of Missouri, Kansas City. Her nursing experience spans multidisciplinary staff and patient education; acute, hospice, and home health nursing; hospital discharge planning and education; supervisor, manager, and directorship positions; and teaching in ADN and BSN programs. Her areas of nursing research focus on medication adherence in older adults and reducing falls in adults aged 65 and older by improving fall risk assessment. She is an internationally recognized speaker on falls, fall-risk assessment, patient safety, and the author of a recently published article on fall-risk assessment. Her current research examines the fall risk assessment practices in licensed assisted living communities in New Mexico.