Root Cause Analysis of 3-year Falls Data From a Tertiary Rehabilitation Center

Falls are a growing public health issue with severe impacts on older adults, their families, and healthcare systems. This study aims to identify the root causes and risk factors of falls in a tertiary rehabilitation center and suggest measures to reduce fall-related hospital stays. This retrospective, cross-sectional study included 248 patients who were reported to have fallen among the patients receiving inpatient rehabilitation at a tertiary rehabilitation center. Demographic and clinical characteristics such as gender, age, diagnosis, day of fall in the rehabilitation hospital, history of chronic disease, polypharmacy, place of fall, time of fall, vitamin D, total (25 OH) levels and albumin levels at the time of admission were recorded. The fall rate was 1.8%, with a median patient age of 56. Falls were most common in stroke (23%), spinal cord injury (18.5%), and pediatric rehabilitation (17.7%) clinics, mainly occurring in patient rooms (47.6%), bathrooms (25%), and clinic corridors (14.9%), typically between 8:00 and 16:00 (48%). In adults, fall risk increased with age (r=0.338, p