Factors Associated With Falls Among Residents Living in Long-Term Care Homes in Ontario

Introduction

The prevalence of falls in Ontario-based long-term care homes is above the provincial benchmark. There is limited research exploring the reason for such a variation. The research question guiding this study was: What are the risk factors for falls among all residents in Ontario's LTC homes?

Methods

A retrospective, population-based study was conducted using Minimum Data Set assessments for all residents of long-term care in Ontario between April 2019 and March 2020. Binomial logistic regression analysis was used to determine the significance of the relationship of selected variables to falls.

Results

Findings identified a significant relationship between several variables that were not previously found in the existing literature and falls.

Conclusion

This study has important implications for clinicians and researchers globally as they aim to better understand the increased prevalence of falls in older adults living in residential care.

Implications for Practice

Clinicians are encouraged to consider alternatives to high-risk medications and closely monitor residents on these medications, implement harm reduction strategies for residents with responsive behaviors, and routinely assess residents for bowel incontinence, cognitive decline, or increased care needs.