Geriatrics Commons^™

Community-Dwelling Older Adult Fall Prevention Improvement Project, Evan Edminster Bsn, Rn, Cfrn, Tcrn, Cen, Nhdp-Bc

Master's Projects and Capstones

Abstract

Problem: Ground-level falls among community-dwelling adults 60 years and older are significant and contribute to adverse health outcomes such as fractures, functional decline, disability, and death. Additionally, falls among community-dwelling older adults are the number one mechanism of injury seen at a Northern California Level II trauma center. Falls often lead to post-fall fear, activity restriction, and physical deconditioning, further compounding fall risk.

Context: When trauma centers provide targeted outreach and screening for unmanaged health risks such as falls, they reduce unnecessary disability and premature death in the local population. Reducing total fall victim numbers and fall recidivism also …

Path Tortuosity In Everyday Movements Of Elderly Persons Increases Fall Prediction Beyond Knowledge Of Fall History, Medication Use, And Standardized Gait And Balance Assessments., William D. Kearns Phd, James L. Fozard Phd, Marion Becker Rn/Phd, Jan M. Jasiewicz Phd, Jeffrey D. Craighead Phd, Lori Holtsclaw Ba, Charles Dion Ma

William D. Kearns, PhD

Abstract Objectives: We hypothesized that variability in voluntary movement paths of assisted living facility (ALF) residents would be greater in the week preceding a fall compared with residents who did not fall. Design: Prospective, observational study using telesurveillance technology. Setting: Two ALFs. Participants: The sample consisted of 69 older ALF residents (53 female) aged 76.9 (SD=11.9 years). Measurement: Daytime movement in ALF common use areas was automatically tracked using a commercially available ultra-wideband radio real-time location sensor network with a spatial resolution of approximately 20 cm. Movement path variability (tortuosity) was gauged using fractal dimension (fractal D). A logistic regressionwas …