Patient adherence and fall risk reduction in elders using Stopping Elder Accidents Death and Injury (STEADI) guidelines in RN-facilitated annual wellness visits

Falls are the leading cause of injury-related death and disability in community-dwelling older adults. Evidence-based fall prevention activities in primary care, including nurse-facilitated wellness visits, have been limited. Barriers including patient engagement and adherence exist. A quality improvement project integrating components of the Centers for Disease Control’s Stopping Elder Accidents, Deaths and Injury was introduced by registered nurses during older adult annual wellness visits. A total of 522 patients were screened, with 21% (n=111) having increased fall risk. Of these, 78% (n=87) engaged in home safety, gait, strength, and balance assessments and the majority (95%, n=83) participated in fall prevention plans of care. At 2-week follow-up, patients’ self-reported adherence was 74% for gait/strength/balance and 67% for home safety. An expanded primary care team model shows promise for promoting fall prevention behaviors. Read the full article after watching this video.