Explore this Free Assignment Sample on NURS90120 Evidence in Practice 2024 to see how sensor alarm interventions, fall prevention strategies, PICO research frameworks, and clinical applications are implemented in Australian aged care assessments. Get expert Assignment Help Services for NURS90120, geriatric care, and evidence-based practice tasks from experienced academic writers.
Effectiveness of Sensor Alarms in Reducing Elderly Falls
1. Summarising A Clinical Topic And Providing a Clear Articulation Of The Problem
In the present day, fall has indeed become one of the significant and clinically relevant topics to study. It is widely seen as a complex issue that includes far-reaching implications for individuals as well as healthcare systems and society. As opined by Ghanem et al. (2024) falls among elderly people mainly experience a high economic burden on the healthcare system. Although falls cannot always be avoided, their frequency and severity can be greatly decreased by identifying potential risk factors and creating efficient remedies.
The problem of falls among elderly people is highly characterised by intrinsic and extrinsic factors along with various age-related psychological changes, polypharmacy, as well as chronic diseases and cognitive impairment. As opined by Song et al. (2024), experiencing any type of environmental hazards, as well as inadequate lighting arrangements, and the use of inappropriate footwear are considered influential determinants and work as extrinsic factors. The gathered data set highlights in aged care settings, the consequences of falls are visibly far-reaching. Elderly people who face serious fall issues experience injuries such as hip fractures, head trauma, etc.
In addition, fall survivors frequently report psychological effects such as anxiety and depression. The financial burden of falls is significant and includes lost productivity, long-term care costs, and decreased mobility. In addition, falls can result in decreased quality of life, greater dread of falling, along reduced mobility. As highlighted by Gharghan & Hashim (2024), despite the implementation of various preventive measures and nursing measures, the occurrence of falls among elderly people in elder care settings exists. This persistent issue mainly necessitates the exploration and development of unique, effective interventions to enhance significant prevention strategies. As opined by Hassan et al. (2024), sensory alarms in the current scenario have emerged as a significant, promising solution to minimise the chances of addressing the complex problem of falls in elder care settings. These gadgets use cutting-edge technology to identify changes in ambient factors, movement patterns, or vital signs. This allows for the early detection of fall risk or the actual fall. Sensory alarms have the potential to reduce the severity of injuries caused by falls and speed up response times by giving caregivers real-time notifications.
2. Presenting A Structured Research Question Using The PICO Model
| PICO Elements | Key Consideration |
| Problem | Residents live in old age care settings and at the same time experience fall risk |
| Intervention | Introducing sensor alarm technology |
| Comparison | Compared to any other health care intervention and available nurse facilities |
| Outcome | Reducing the number of falls |
Table 1: PICO Model implication for framing a research question
(Source: Self-Developed)
Considering the identified PICO elements, the research question is as follows:
RQ: How effective is using sensor alarms to reduce the number of falls among residents in aged care?
3. Presenting Table: Highlighting Key Insights Gained From Selected Articles
There is an extensive range of data sets available, which highlight a variety of interventions for preventing falls in older people in elder care facilities as well as hospital settings. While reviewing data sources, the most relevant data sets have been selected to make valid, informative discussions on a chosen promising solution to prevent or minimise the chances of experiencing falls. Below, a table highlighting the essentials of the selected six data sources has been presented.
| Name of Sources | Purpose of Study | Dataset | Methods | Relevant findings | Contribution to the research question |
| Stephen, K., & Campbell, A. (2024). The experiences of older adults with cognitive impairment in using falls prevention alarms in hospital: A qualitative descriptive study. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 71(1), 132-148. | The main purpose of the study is to explore the experience of older adults having cognitive impairment using the concepts of fall prevention alarms in the hospital | Hospitalised elderly patients with cognitive impairment | Qualitative descriptive study | The experiences of older persons with cognitive impairment using fall prevention alarms were not uniform. Some believed they were useful, but others were too constrained and scared (Stephen Campbell, 2024). | It examines the viewpoint of the user regarding fall prevention alerts, emphasising the significance of taking patient experiences into account while designing and implementing alarms. |
| Subramaniam, K., Welfred, R., Subramanian, P., Chinna, K., Ibrahim, F., Mohktar, M. S., & Tan, M. P. (2017). The effectiveness of a wireless modular bed absence sensor device for fall prevention among older inpatients. Frontiers in public health, 4, 292. | The main aim of the study is to efficiently evaluate the effectiveness of the wireless modular bed absence sensor device for successful and efficient fall prevention among older inpatients | elderly patients | randomised controlled experiment | Comparing the wireless module bed absence sensing device to the control group, fall rates did not significantly decrease (Subermaniam et al. 2017). | shows that not all fall prevention alarms are created equal by offering data on the efficacy of a particular type. |
| Shee, A. W., Phillips, B., Hill, K., & Dodd, K. (2014). Feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of an electronic sensor bed/chair alarm in reducing falls in patients with cognitive impairment in a subacute ward. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 29(3), 253-262. | The main concern of the study is to evaluate the viability, acceptability, and efficacy of a wireless bed/chair alarm in a subacute ward for minimising falls among individuals who have cognitive impairment | In a subacute ward, people who have cognitive impairment | Quasi-experimental design | Although the alert was workable and well-received by the personnel, there was conflicting evidence about its ability to lower falls (Shee et al. 2014. | explains how fall prevention alarms should be used in practice and emphasises the need for more studies to determine their efficacy. |
| Cameron, I. D., Dyer, S. M., Panagoda, C. E., Murray, G. R., Hill, K. D., Cumming, R. G., & Kerse, N. (2018). Interventions for preventing falls in older people in care facilities and hospitals. Cochrane database of systematic reviews, (9). | To evaluate the efficacy of fall prevention treatments for the elderly in hospitals and care settings | elderly patients in hospitals and care centres | comprehensive evaluation and meta-analysis | Fall prevention strategies have conflicting data supporting their efficacy; while some interventions appear promising, overall findings are not very clear (Cameron et al. 2018). | gives a thorough summary of the research that has been done on fall prevention measures, such as alarms, but emphasises the need for further thorough investigations. |
| Timmons, S., Vezyridis, P., & Sahota, O. (2019). Trialling technologies to reduce hospital in‐patient falls: an agential realist analysis. Sociology of health & illness, 41(6), 1104-1119. | To efficiently explore the factors that influence the implementation and efficient use of technology to reduce hospital inpatient falls | Patients and hospital employees | Realist analysis with an asymmetric perspective | Several variables, such as organisational support, patient acceptability, and staff participation, affect how well technology-based fall prevention programs work (Timmons et al. 2019). | offers an empirical basis for comprehending the potential and difficulties associated with installing preventative fall alarms in medical facilities. |
| Sahota, O., Drummond, A., Kendrick, D., Grainge, M. J., Vass, C., Sach, T., ... & Avis, M. (2014). REFINE (Reducing Falls in In-patient Elderly) using bed and bedside chair pressure sensors linked to radio-pagers in acute hospital care: a randomised controlled trial. Age and Ageing, 43(2), 247-253. | To assess how well pressure sensors on beds and bedside chairs that are connected to radio-pagers work to prevent falls in critical care hospitals | elderly seniors receiving urgent hospital care | randomised controlled experiment | When comparing the intervention group to the control group, the difference in fall rates was not statistically significant (Sahota et al. 2014). | demonstrates the efficacy of a certain kind of fall prevention alert, suggesting that further research is necessary to validate the results, even if there could be some advantages. |
Table 2: Selected data sources with insightful findings
(Source: Self-Developed)
4. Selecting The Best Primary Research Study and Providing A Rationale For Considering It As The Best
Among the set of chosen studies, the study presented by Sahota et al. (2014) is considered the best primary research source that supports investigating the long-term effectiveness of falls prevention alarms in hospital care. The study's rigorous methodology and impact on the field of preventing falls are the basis for this judgment. Overall investigation used a controlled, randomised trial design, which is the gold-standard method for assessing the efficacy of interventions. By using this design, bias is reduced, and the findings' trustworthiness is increased. Besides, the methodological choice to proceed with gathered information in this study highlights a relatively large sample size, which increases the scope of conducting statistical analysis to detect differences between intervention and control groups.
The main rationale behind considering it best is the way it presented data, highlighting the use of bed and bedside chair pressure sensors linked to radio-pagers, which constitute a novel and potentially impactful intervention. Another rationale behind choosing the study lies in the fact that it mainly stands out as the most rigorous as well as informative primary research study, which has been presented using its robust methodology, which is relevant to the target population. Moreover, as the study concentrated on acute hospital care, a high-risk environment for falls, the results were especially applicable to this population. This particular study provides valid justification as well as an explanation regarding the use of chair sensors to minimise the threat of elderly falls in old age care settings as well as hospitals. However, the choice of study remained justified in the way it offers a better understanding of the importance of adding tech-facilitated solutions to minimise the threat based on recruiting a large sample size.
5. Summarising Aim, Method, Result And Conclusion Of Chosen Study
5.1 Aim Of The Study
The primary aim of the study is to analyse the physical effectiveness as well as cost-effectiveness of using bed as well as bedside chair pressure sensors, which are linked to radio-pagers in reducing falls among elderly inpatients in an acute hospital setting.
5.2 Methodology Used
The chosen methodological approach indicates that Sahota et al. (2014) followed a primary research approach to execute the study. Elderly individuals hospitalised to acute general medical units in a prominent UK teaching hospital participated in a randomised controlled experiment. Random assignments were made to place participants in one of two groups: the control group (typical care) or the group that received the intervention (bed and the bedside chair pressure gauges with radio-pagers). The frequency of inpatient nightstand falls every 1,000 bed days served as the main indicator of success.
5.3 Results
In this case, the study has been executed considering the sample size of 1839 participants. The ultimate study results presented by Sahota and colleagues (2014) highlight that there was no significant difference between the number of bedside falls intervention and control groups. In addition, the two groups' times to first nightstand fall did not differ significantly. Costs were greater for the intervention group than for the control group.
5.4 Conclusion
Based on the reported information in the chosen journal, it can be concluded that the rate of in-patient bedside falls, the length of time for the initial bedside fall, and the cost-effectiveness of bed and bedside armchair pressure sensors in senior patients in acute, generalist medical facilities in the UK were not decreased by employing radio-pagers as bed and chair pressure sensors.
6. Critical Appraising The Study Using Appropriate Concepts Of Validity
The chosen sturdy paper is based on an analysis of the effectiveness as well as cost-effectiveness of using bed and bedside chair pressure sensors, which are linked to radio-pagers to reduce falls among elderly patients in acute hospital settings. The research presentation is valid enough, and there are a few aspects that justify the choice of study as a credible data source to answer the research question. Below, a few elements of validity consideration for the chosen study have been presented.
Internal Validity
The concept of internal validity mainly refers to the extent to which a research study establishes logical and insightful cause-and-effect relationships between the intervention and outcome. As per the opinion of Murakami et al. (2024), this particular process helps in identifying as well as confounding variables and maintaining relationships among outcomes. Its purpose is to guarantee that variations in results are more likely to be ascribed to the intervention than to extraneous causes. It also mentions the use of masked outcomes assessment, which lowers the possibility of bias in collecting information and analysis. The chosen study presented by Sahota et al. (2014) highlights the choice of randomisation of participants for the intervention as well as a control group. These elements are considered pillars of maintaining and establishing research validity. Nevertheless, it is unclear from the study if individuals had been blinded regarding their group assignment, which may affect the outcomes.
External Validity
The term external validity is known as the generalizability of study findings, considering different populations, settings as well and conditions. As opined by Ahmadinejad et al. (2024), it mainly underlines external factors that impact study presentation and the overall research conduction process. In the case of the chosen research paper, it has come into an observation that Sahota et al. (2014) have focused on considering UK hospitals as specific locations to manipulate the sample. The research was carried out at a single teaching hospital in the United Kingdom, which restricts the applicability of the results to other healthcare environments. Although it is admirable that a varied sample of senior inpatients was included, it is not made clear whether or not this sample is typical of the larger senior community. Only focusing on acute medical wards of UK teaching hospitals might not be entirely representative of the entire care setting, where elderly falls are of great concern.
Measurement Validity
The fundamental concept of measurement validity is known as the accuracy and precision of measurement tools, which are used in the study. As opined by Murakami et al. (2024), measurement validity highlights significant scope to maintain the readability and credibility of the entire study process. It offers scope for the research paper to be used as a future study. The main outcome measure used in the research is the number of intra-patient bedside accidents per 1,000 bedding days, which is a well-defined and distinct outcome. Nevertheless, there are concerns regarding the validity and reliability of the data because the study doesn't go into great depth about the procedures used to recognise and document falls. Furthermore, although pressure sensors are used to capture patient absences from bed, there is little information provided about the specificity and sensitivity of these instruments in determining the likelihood of actual falls.
7. Discussing The Application Of The Study’s Result To Identified Clinical Issues In Practice
The key findings presented by Sahota and colleagues (2014) highlight significant clinical practice in efficiently managing falls among elderly inpatients. It provides valuable insights regarding the challenges and complexities of fall prevention in acute care settings. The study emphasises the need for a multifaceted approach to fall prevention. It is improbable that relying just on one intervention would provide noteworthy outcomes. A thorough fall prevention program needs to include a variety of tactics, such as staff education, medication assessments, exercise regimens, and environmental changes. Moreover, the chosen study underpins the importance of considering the cost-effectiveness of elderly fall prevention. Relying on a single solution is not up to fulfilling significant adults' demands. A thorough fall prevention program needs to include a variety of tactics, such as staff education, medication reviews, exercise regimens, and environmental changes.
On the other hand, the chosen study mainly underscores the initial importance of considering the cost-effectiveness of all kinds of prevention interventions. Although lowering falls is a top concern, it's crucial to weigh the advantages of treatments against their related costs. Given the scarcity of healthcare resources, it's critical to give top priority to therapies with high rates of return on investment. Nonetheless, it is clear from the collected data set that there is a need for continued investigation and assessment in order to pinpoint practical fall prevention measures. Healthcare professionals should keep up with the most recent research and modify their procedures as necessary.
