Factors influencing the provision of fall prevention activities by occupational therapists: A qualitative study

Research Objectives: Describe the experiences of acute care occupational therapists when providing, assessing, and documenting fall prevention activities.

Design: A qualitative study using a phenomenological approach. Data collection used semi-structured interviews.

Setting: Three hospital systems, consisting of six Wisconsin hospitals (3 Urban, 3 Suburban, 1 rural)

Participants: Criterion Sampling. Recruitment email sent through state OT organization. Seven full-time acute care Occupational Therapists

Interventions: Not applicable

Main Outcome Measures: OTs completed individual semi-structured interviews querying experiences. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using thematic analysis.

Results: Consistent barriers were identified that precluded the provision of fall prevention education or assessments: being limited by hospital safety precautions, time for provision, patient and personal barriers, and documentation. Facilitators included administrative support, teamwork and fall prevention equipment, and process.

Conclusions: Acute care OT's provision of fall prevention assessments and education is affected by hospital safety protocols, time, and documentation concerns. OTs should leverage their knowledge of best practices for fall prevention to improve their unique opportunity as key members to address falls while addressing hospital safety precautions in the acute care setting.OTs should consider the development of a fall documentation process and educate others on OT documentation.

Author(s) Disclosures: None