TIP OF THE WEEK
I HATE FALLING: A mnemonic for key physical findings in the elderly patient who falls or nearly falls
Falls are the leading cause of injury-related visits to emergency departments in the United States and the primary etiology of accidental deaths in persons over the age of 65 years. One- third of community-dwelling elderly persons and 60 percent of nursing home residents fall each year. Risk factors for falls in the elderly include increasing age, medication use, cognitive impairment and sensory deficits.
Use the mnemonic below to remember the important physical clues that a person might be at risk for falling:
I - Inflammation of joints (or joint deformity)
H - Hypotension (orthostatic blood pressure changes)
A - Auditory and visual abnormalities
T - Tremor (Parkinson's disease or other causes of tremor)
E - Equilibrium (balance) problem
F - Foot problems
A - Arrhythmia, heart block or valvular disease
L - Leg-length discrepancy
L - Lack of conditioning (generalized weakness)
I - Illness
N - Nutrition (poor; weight loss)
G - Gait disturbance
RESOURCE SPOTLIGHT
Patient Information Handout about Falls
This handout was created by the American Academy of Family Physicians in 2000 to provide a general overview about what causes falls and what patients and their family members can do to prevent falls.
IN THE NEWS
DOCTORS STILL DENY OLDER PATIENTS TESTS AND TREATMENT
February 12, 2007 -- Newswire -- Doctors are still denying older people the sorts of tests and treatment they would offer to younger patients, reveals a survey in Quality and Safety in Health Care. Half of those surveyed were influenced by a patient’s age in their decisions on whether to send a patient for tests or prescribe treatment. Patients over 65 were managed differently from those who were younger. Read More
NCQA SEEKS TO PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION ON HEALTH PLAN QUALITY
February 20, 2007 -- Kaiser Network -- The National Committee for Quality Assurance announced proposals to increase the amount of information available to consumers on the quality of health plans, CQ HealthBeat reports. NCQA proposed to require PPOs to report the same quality of care information that HMOs currently must report to receive accreditation from the group. Read More
COMING ATTRACTIONS
ARE YOU READY FOR PAY FOR PERFORMANCE?
Attend one of these half-day meetings to learn more about:
- Current pay-for-performance demonstration projects.
- How Ohio agencies are performing on key measures.
- Best practices and barriers of Ohio agencies.
- Using teletriage as a quality improvement strategy.
Choose the AM (9-12) or PM (1-4) session. Registration begins 30 minutes prior to the start of the conference. Register today for a meeting in your area:
- 3/20/07: Miamisburg (Dayton area)
- 3/21/07: Toledo
- 3/27/07: Akron
- 3/28/07: Dublin (Columbus area)
- 3/29/07: Dover (New Philadelphia/South Canton area)
Who should attend? CEO, Administrator, Operations, Director of Clinical Services, Nurses, or Quality Improvement Coordinator.
Click here for more information or to register now.
