Contact email

PHSFallTIPS@partners.org

Overview

By conducting over a decade of research on inpatient fall prevention using the evidence-based Fall TIPS intervention, we have created a robust toolkit to support hospitals around the country interested in implementing the tool.

Department

Department of Medicine

Division

Division of General Internal Medicine

Collaborators

:We are collaborating with researchers across the Partners HealthCare System, Montefiore Medical Center, and New York-Presbyterian health system to evaluate the efficacy of the Fall TIPS tool in a three-year period (13 hospitals in total). Outside of our grant, we have worked closely with the New Jersey Hospital Association, Iowa Healthcare Collaborative, and New York State Partnership for Patients to train staff how to use the Fall TIPS tool. In May 2018, we launched a Fall TIPS Collaborative that any hospital interested in implementing the tool can join at no cost. Currently, 149 hospitals across the country have expressed interest in the tool and/or implemented it at their institutions. Fall TIPS is also being implemented in Canada, China, Finland, and Taiwan.
Support: Funding, Mentorship

Status/Stage of Development

Ongoing program

Measurement

We are in the process of collecting data on fall rates and fall with injury rates for the 13 hospitals in Partners HealthCare, Montefiore, and New York-Presbyterian health systems. In addition, we have collected data on Fall TIPS compliance and patient engagement levels using a 3-question audit tool. In the last year of our study, we will conduct a cost-benefit analysis. Secondary metrics for evaluating Fall TIPS efficacy include analyzing scores on a Fall Prevention Knowledge Test and on a Fall TIPS Efficiency Scale (to evaluate nurse perception on which components of Fall TIPS conserve versus waste time).

Results

We know from our previous work that patient engagement in the fall prevention process is effective. We know that tailored care planning based on a prospectively validated fall risk assessment tool is vital. Our prior research has observed clinically significant reductions in fall rates and fall with injury rates over 6 month periods, but in this study we will have data across three large academic health centers 21 months pre and post Fall TIPS implementation. More background information, results, and a list of publications relevant to this project can be found on our website www.falltips.org.

Major Project Needs

• Funding
• Collaborators