Preventing hospital falls by optimal screening: Educating health professionals

There will be two participant cohorts receiving an education intervention Cohort 1: The researchers will provide a three-hour education program at each intervention hospital, to consenting clinical leaders, using best educational design. This will educate clinical leaders on the latest evidence on hospital falls risk assessment and guide them in how to implement a new falls screening form (Form B) that eliminates a traditional checklist risk assessment approach. The education intervention will also gauge participants’ views on the old Falls Risk Assessment Tool (FRAT) form (Form A) compared to the new form (Form B). Furthermore, participants in cohort 1 will be provided with the practical skills to enable them to deliver an effective, one-hour in-service training session on the use of the new falls screening form, to nurses and allied health professionals, who are involved in completing the new tool. They will be taught the education program methods and will be given a standard lesson plan with all associated educational resources. Cohort 2: The second cohort will consist of all consenting nurses and allied health professionals involved in completing falls screening forms at participating hospitals. They will attend a one-hour in-service training and be taught the education intervention by the clinicians who were in cohort 1. Methods of educational delivery will include: • interactive face-to face teaching • content delivery on the latest evidence for falls risk assessment • role-play simulated exercises • critical thinking activities from video-recordings of simulated patients showing a range of falls related clinical vignettes • content delivery and practice activities on how to use the new form, how to progress immediately to the falls mitigation components of the form, and how to spend the time saved on falls prevention The study will be based on a Pre and Post-test design, elaborated through a mixed methods research approach. Data will be collected via de-identified surveys (using the participants’ initials and last three digits of their mobile telephone number) and individual telephone interviews. Multiple time points will be used for data collection from surveys: Pre-test: Immediately prior to the education program (paper-based survey) Post-test 1: Immediately post the education program (paper-based survey) Post-test 2: Two months post implementation of the new screening tool (electronic survey) Paper-based surveys will be collected by those who deliver the education program. For cohort 2, all surveys will be returned to researchers via registered post.