@article{ref1,
title="Falls prevention education for older adults during and after hospitalization: a systematic review and meta-analysis",
journal="Health education journal",
year="2014",
author="Lee, Den-Ching A. and Pritchard, Elizabeth and McDermott, Fiona and Haines, Terry P.",
volume="73",
number="5",
pages="530-544",
abstract="OBJECTIVES: To assess the effectiveness of patient education in reducing falls, promoting behavioural change and the uptake of prevention activities in older adults during and after hospitalization. <br><br>DESIGN: Systematic review and meta-analysis. <br><br>METHODS: A systematic search of five health science databases was performed up to November 2012. Studies that investigated patient education as a single intervention or in a multifactorial falls prevention programme in the hospital and/or post-discharge community settings, were eligible for inclusion. Standard meta-analysis methods were used to assess the effectiveness of patient education compared to usual care. Tests for heterogeneity, subgroup meta-analyses and a priori subgroup meta-analyses were performed for primary outcomes where appropriate. Primary outcomes were incidence of falls, falls-related injury and healthcare use due to falls. Secondary outcomes were mechanisms of behavioural change in falls prevention. Qualitative data were analysed by narrative review. <br><br>RESULTS: Falls prevention programmes that contained patient education were effective in reducing fall rates amongst hospital inpatients and post-discharge populations (risk ratio [RR] 0.77, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.69 to 0.87), and in reducing the proportion of patients who became fallers in hospital (RR 0.78, 95% CI 0.7 to 0.87). Patient education generally increased knowledge about falls and awareness of prevention strategies. The uptake of strategies may be dependent on the activities being targeted. <br><br>CONCLUSION: Falls prevention education should be recommended for older adults while in hospital and following discharge. Falls education programmes should consider the use of intensive face-to-face patient education with multimedia materials in preference to provision of written information alone or brief amounts of interpersonal contact.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0017-8969",
doi="10.1177/0017896913499266",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0017896913499266"
}