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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 10 page research paper that examines nursing and medical literature relating to falls and the elderly. This literature review discusses the significance of falls the elderly; intrinsic and extrinsic risk factors; precautions/interventions that can be taken and the negative drawbacks to the use of side rails. Bibliography lists 7 sources.
Page Count:
10 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khelfals.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
roughly 400,000 people each year who are over 75 years of age seek the services of an emergency department (ED) as a result of such accidents (Mitchell, 2004). The problems
that can result from an elderly person taking a fall include "loss of mobility, psychological difficulties, increase in dependency and/or disability, hypothermia, pressure-related injury and infection" (Mitchell, 2004, p.
14). Statistics show that half of all elderly individuals who fracture their hips never return to the level of mobility that they enjoyed prior to their fall (Wang and Wollin,
2004). In other words, falls can dramatically and often permanently totally change the quality of life for older individuals and, in the most severe cases, result in death. Nurse-led
exercise programs can result in improved "strength, balance and endurance" for older patients and, thereby, reduce the incidence of falls (Hayes, 2004). Additionally, nurses are well-suited to initiating falls-prevention programs,
which can effectively reduce the incidence of falls through educational efforts that make clients aware of risk factors (Wang and Wollin, 2004). Risk factors involved with falls Risk factors
fall under two general categories, indicating the multifaceted nature of the causes behind elderly falls (Dickinson, et al, 2004). Intrinsic factors relate to the individuals personal features and the changes
that are often incurred as a natural part of the aging process (Wang and Wollin, 2004). These changes include "impaired vision and hearing, illness and medication use" (Wang and Wollin,
2004, p. 14). Extrinsic factors refer to the inherent risks that are associated with the clients environment (Wang and Wollin, 2004). Intrinsic factors : One empirical study identified that
general weakness and gait disorders were the most commonly found risk factors within elderly populations living in residential care facilities (gait disorders: 20-50 percent; leg weakness 48-80 percent)(Wang and Wollin,
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