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Tai Chi for Falls Prevention: A Student-Led DNP Project

Description

Aim: To reduce the fear of falling in an elderly population by teaching ‘Tai Chi for Falls Prevention’ classes twice a week for 12 weeks.

Background & Significance: Falls continue to be the leading cause of injury-related deaths of Arizonans who are 65 years or older - well above the national…

Aim: To reduce the fear of falling in an elderly population by teaching ‘Tai Chi for Falls Prevention’ classes twice a week for 12 weeks.

Background & Significance: Falls continue to be the leading cause of injury-related deaths of Arizonans who are 65 years or older - well above the national average. It is predicted that by 2030, national medical spending for this population will total over $31 billion, yearly. Tai Chi is revered for being a beneficial form of simple, low-impact exercise, which the CDC endorses for its falls risk reduction benefits.

Methods: The intervention consisted of 60-minute classes occurring twice a week for 12 weeks. Participants were English-speaking, between 65-85 years old, and able to ambulate independently. Appropriate pre-screening tools were used before applicants consented. Their Fear of Falling (FoF) was measured using a fall risk perception tool at the beginning, middle, and the end of the project. This ordinal data was analyzed with Friedman ANOVA using SPSS 25

Outcomes/Results: After enrolling five total participants, only three completed the project. This severely limited data analysis of their FoF, resulting in a statistical significance (p = 0.68), deeming the intervention ineffective - Despite observable downwards trending FoF scores.

Conclusion: The acceptance of the null hypothesis is attributed to the low enrollment and high attrition rate. Also, the only data measured was quantifiable, subjective data. Future projects could add objective data to reinforce the benefits of Tai Chi. This might reinforce the validity of Tai Chi as a practical recommendation due to its cost-effective simple interventional design and effectiveness for prevention of accidental falls. Increased focus on improved recruitment & retainment strategies should be prioritized for similar projects in the future.
ContributorsSawicki, Graham C. (Author) / Thrall, Charlotte (Thesis advisor)
Created2019-04-15
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Implementation of Post-Fall Nursing Peer Reviews to Improve Patient Safety Culture

Description
Falls in hospitalized patients are a widespread occurrence in the United States, resulting in unfavorable outcomes amongst patients, healthcare providers, and hospital organizations. Current fall prevention efforts have failed to adequately reduce patient fall rates. Nursing peer review (NPR) seeks to refine the quality and safety of patient care, making…

Falls in hospitalized patients are a widespread occurrence in the United States, resulting in unfavorable outcomes amongst patients, healthcare providers, and hospital organizations. Current fall prevention efforts have failed to adequately reduce patient fall rates. Nursing peer review (NPR) seeks to refine the quality and safety of patient care, making its use applicable in post-fall reviews. This evidenced-based quality improvement project implements a post-fall NPR program to examine patient falls in an inpatient setting, in addition to the facilitation of patient safety culture education. The Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture was used to assess nurses’ perceptions of their units’ patient safety culture. The pre- and post-survey results were analyzed using a two-tailed Mann-Whitney U test, determining significant differences in event (U=2033, z=-2.81, p=.005) and learning (U=1196, z=-2.52, p=.012). No significant differences were noted in support (U=1587, z=-0.05, p=.959), prevent (U=1369, z=-0.70, p=.485), and rate (U=1355.5, z=-0.34, p=.737). Post-fall NPR participation survey results were analyzed using descriptive statistics, showing that it improved patient safety culture (n=10, 91%), reduced “blame & shame” culture (n=9, 82%), and was a non-punitive learning method (n=10, 91%). Reviewing falls through NPR and educating nurses on patient safety culture can create a positive environment to learn from falls. Additional research is needed to determine the impact on patient fall rates.
ContributorsBlythe, M. Lindsay (Author) / Morgan, Michelle (Thesis advisor) / Arizona State University. College of Nursing & Healthcare Innovation (Contributor)
Created2022-04-28