Directorate of Nursing & Midwifery, Western Health, 176 Furlong Road, St. Albans, VIC 3021, Australia.
School of Nursing and Midwifery, Deakin University, 1 Gheringhap St., Geelong, VIC 3220, Australia.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Oct 22;19(21):13735. doi: 10.3390/ijerph192113735.
Inpatient falls are devastating for patients and their families and an ongoing problem for healthcare providers worldwide. Inpatient falls overnight are particularly difficult to predict and prevent. The aim of this cohort study was to evaluate effectiveness of overnight portable video monitoring as an adjunct falls prevention strategy for high falls risk patients in inpatient clinical units. Over three months, three clinical inpatient wards were provided with baby monitor equipment to facilitate portable video monitoring. Portable video monitoring registers were completed nightly and nursing staff were invited to complete surveys (n = 31) to assess their experiences of using portable video monitoring. A total of 494 episodes of portable video monitoring were recorded over the three-month period, with clinical areas reporting a total of four inpatient falls from monitoring participants (0.8% of total portable video monitoring episodes). Overall, there was a statistically significant reduction in total inpatient falls overnight on the target wards. Surveyed nursing staff reported feeling better equipped to prevent falls and indicated they would like to continue using portable monitoring as a falls prevention strategy. This study provides evidence to support the use of portable video monitoring as an effective falls prevention strategy in the hospital environment.
住院患者跌倒对患者及其家庭来说是灾难性的，也是全球医疗保健提供者面临的一个持续问题。夜间住院患者跌倒尤其难以预测和预防。本队列研究的目的是评估夜间便携式视频监测作为住院临床科室高跌倒风险患者跌倒预防策略的有效性。在三个月内，为三个临床住院病房配备了婴儿监护设备，以方便进行便携式视频监测。每晚完成便携式视频监测记录，并邀请护理人员完成调查（n=31），以评估他们使用便携式视频监测的经验。在三个月期间共记录了 494 次便携式视频监测，临床区域报告了来自监测参与者的 4 例住院患者跌倒（占总便携式视频监测事件的 0.8%）。总体而言，目标病房夜间住院患者跌倒总数显著减少。接受调查的护理人员报告说，他们更有能力预防跌倒，并表示希望继续将便携式监测作为预防跌倒的策略。本研究为在医院环境中使用便携式视频监测作为有效的跌倒预防策略提供了证据支持。
