NURS FPX 4035 Assessment 1 Enhancing Quality and Safety

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Capella university

NURS-FPX4035 Enhancing Patient Safety and Quality of Care

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Date

Enhancing Quality and Safety

Patient falls are a big concern in hospitals. They can cause injuries, longer hospital stays, and higher medical costs. Many things can lead to falls, like weakness, confusion, vision problems, and unsafe hospital conditions such as poor lighting and clutter. Hospitals need to take steps to prevent falls and keep patients safe (Linnerud et al., 2023). This assessment looks at ways to stop falls, improve safety, and reduce costs. It focuses on important safety steps, like checking patients for fall risks, training staff properly, and keeping hospital spaces clear and well-lit. Nurses play a key role in making these changes. They work with doctors, therapists, and other hospital staff to create a safe place for patients. By working together, hospitals can lower fall risks and improve patient care.

Factors Leading to Patient Falls in Healthcare Settings

Patient falls can cause broken bones, head injuries, longer hospital stays, and even death. In the U.S., 30-35% of falls lead to injuries (Garcia et al., 2021). Many things can cause a patient to fall. Some are related to the patient, while others come from the hospital setting. Patient-related risks include aging, memory problems, and trouble moving. Older adults and people with dementia, Parkinson’s disease, or stroke are more likely to fall.

They may have weak muscles, poor balance, or side effects from medicine, like dizziness or low blood pressure (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2020). Patients with poor vision or sensory deficits are also at risk. Hospital-related risks include not having enough staff, poor lighting, messy hallways, and the wrong use of walkers or canes. If safety steps are not followed, like turning on bed alarms or keeping call buttons nearby, falls can happen more often. Preventing falls takes teamwork and careful attention.

If a patient’s fall risk is not checked when they admit to the hospital or during their stay, chances to prevent falls can be missed. Some medicines, like sedatives, blood pressure pills, and taking too many medications at once, can make patients dizzy or unsteady, increasing the risk of falling. Hospitals need to use proven methods to lower these risks. Groups like Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) and The Joint Commission stress the need for fall prevention programs.

These programs include patient-centered care, staff training, and making hospital spaces safer (Ernstmeyer & Christman, 2021). Nurses with a bachelor’s degree play a big role in leading these efforts. They help make sure safety steps are followed, speak up for patients, and work with the care team to prevent falls. By focusing on fall prevention, hospitals can keep patients safer, lower medical costs, and create a culture where safety comes first.

Solutions to Improve Patient Safety and Reduce Costs Related to Patient Falls

Using proven fall prevention methods is important for keeping patients safe and lowering costs for hospitals. Every year in the U.S., about 700,000 to 1 million people are hospitalized due to falls (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), n.d.). Treating these injuries is expensive, costing between $351 and $13,616 per patient (Dykes et al., 2023). Hospitals face extra financial pressure because Medicare and Medicaid do not pay for preventable fall-related costs. This makes it even more important for healthcare organizations to focus on preventing falls and protecting patients.

The best way to prevent falls is to use multiple safety strategies. Nurses can check a patient’s fall risk using tools like the Morse Fall Scale or Hendrich II Fall Risk Model. These checks help find high-risk patients so nurses can take the right steps to keep them safe. Making the hospital safer also helps for patients with high risk of falls. Good lighting, non-slip floors, and clear hallways lower the chance of falls (Strini et al., 2021). Safety tools like bed alarms, grab bars, and fall mats add extra protection. Using these methods together can greatly reduce fall risks and keep patients safe.

Training staff and working together as a team help prevent falls. Every year, about 1.3 million people in nursing homes or long-term care facilities fall. Many are older or have health issues that make falling more likely (AHRQ), n.d.). Having enough nurses is also important. When there are too few nurses, it takes longer to help patients, which increases the risk of falls. Using proven safety steps keeps patients safe and saves money. Preventing falls means fewer long hospital stays, extra treatments, and legal problems. This helps make healthcare better and more efficient. 

Nursing Coordination to Increase Patient Safety and Reduce Costs Related to Patient Falls

Nurses are critical in coordinating care to enhance patient safety and reduce healthcare costs, particularly preventing patient falls. Effective nursing coordination involves interdisciplinary collaboration, patient education, and the implementation of evidence-based fall prevention strategies. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), (2020) indicate that falls result in an estimated $50 billion in annual healthcare costs in the United States, with fatal falls contributing to an additional $754 million. Since Medicare and Medicaid do not reimburse hospitals for preventable falls, healthcare facilities must rely on proactive nursing-led interventions to minimize financial losses. Nurses can implement routine fall risk assessments, use non-slip flooring, ensure adequate nurse-to-patient ratios, and encourage interdisciplinary collaboration to reduce fall occurrences. 

One key nursing strategy is the integration of structured fall prevention programs, including standardized fall risk assessments using tools like the Morse Fall Scale. Nurses can coordinate with physical therapists to implement mobility programs that strengthen patients’ balance and reduce fall risk (Strini et al., 2021). For example, nurses must educate patients and families about fall prevention strategies. Dykes et al., (2023) show that using a strong fall prevention program, like the Fall TIPS Program, can save $22 million. Nurses play a key role in making sure safety measures are in place, such as good lighting, bed alarms, and non-slip floors. These steps help protect patients from harm and lower hospital readmissions and costs. When nurses focus on teamwork and patient-centered care, they make hospitals safer and healthcare more affordable. 

Stakeholders in Nursing Coordination for Patient Fall Prevention

To keep patients safe and prevent falls, nurses need to work with many people in healthcare. This includes doctors, hospital leaders, therapists, safety officers, cleaning staff, and patients with their families. Each person has an important job in fall prevention. Working together helps create a safer environment and better care for patients. Physician and advanced practice providers (APPs) are crucial collaborators, as they assess patients’ medical conditions, prescribe necessary interventions, and approve assistive devices such as walkers or canes (Linnerud et al., 2023). Hospital administrators are responsible for allocating resources and implementing policies that support fall prevention programs. Their commitment to funding initiatives, such as bed alarms and staff education, directly impacts patient outcomes. 

Physical and occupational therapists help nurses create movement plans for each patient. This helps patients stay steady and lowers the chance of falling. Patient safety officers study falls reports, look for patterns, and make sure the hospital follows safety rules, like those from The Joint Commission (The Joint Commission, 2025). Environmental services staff contribute by maintaining a hazard-free hospital environment, ensuring proper lighting, and eliminating potential fall risks, such as wet floors or cluttered hallways. Patients and families also play a big role. When they learn about fall prevention, they can help follow safety steps and work with the care team. By working together, nurses help make hospitals safer and lower the costs of treating fall-related injuries.

Conclusion

Preventing patient falls is crucial for safety. Changes, like better lighting and regular risk checks, can help. Nurses play a big role by working with doctors, therapists, and families. When hospitals focus on fall prevention, patients stay safer, and costs go down. Everyone must work together to make hospitals a safer place.

References

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). (n.d.). Falls prevention. Www.ahrq.gov. https://www.ahrq.gov/topics/falls.html 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2020). Cost of older adults falls. Stacks.cdc.gov. https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/122747 

NURS FPX 4035 Assessment 1 Enhancing Quality and Safety

Dykes, P. C., Bowen, M. C., Lipsitz, S., Franz, C., Adelman, J., Adkison, L., Bogaisky, M., Carroll, D., Carter, E., Herlihy, L., Lindros, M. E., Ryan, V., Scanlan, M., Walsh, M.-A., Wien, M., & Bates, D. W. (2023). Cost of inpatient falls and cost-benefit analysis of implementation of an evidence-based fall prevention program. JAMA Health Forum, 4(1), e225125. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamahealthforum.2022.5125 

Ernstmeyer, K., & Christman, E. (2021). Chapter 5 Safety introduction. Www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov; Chippewa Valley Technical College. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK591826/ 

Garcia, A., Bjarnadottir, R. (Raga) I., Keenan, G. M., & Macieira, T. G. R. (2021). Nurses’ perceptions of recommended fall prevention strategies. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, Publish Ahead of Print(3). https://doi.org/10.1097/ncq.0000000000000605 

Linnerud, S., Aimée, L., Graverholt, B., Idland, G., Taraldsen, K., & Brovold, T. (2023). Stakeholder development of an implementation strategy for fall prevention in Norwegian home care – a qualitative co-creation approach. BMC Health Services Research, 23(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-023-10394-x 

Strini, V., Schiavolin, R., & Prendin, A. (2021). Fall risk assessment scales: A systematic literature review. Nursing Reports, 11(2), 430–443. https://doi.org/10.3390/nursrep11020041 

NURS FPX 4035 Assessment 1 Enhancing Quality and Safety

The Joint Commission. (2025). National patient safety goals. The Joint Commission. https://www.jointcommission.org/standards/national-patient-safety-goals/