In recent Maryland nursing home injury news, more than 24 hospitals in the state of Maryland are taking part of the Maryland Patient Safety Center’s (MPSC) SAFE from FALLS initiative, a program providing state facilities with a “road map” to prevent patient and resident falls—to reduce personal injury and harm.
The Maryland program, based on an original program in Minnesota, was created through the Maryland legislature, with the Delmarva Foundation and the Maryland Hospital Association chosen as operators, to work to decrease nursing home and healthcare falls overall, and decrease the severity of resident falls, especially falls with personal injury.
The SAFE from FALLS “road map” was developed by studying acute care, home health care, and nursing home care—the three environments that the project is aiming to help. The program was then tested in these healthcare settings during 2008 and 2009. Today there are reportedly 50-60 nursing homes using the program’s road map, with 30 hospitals and 12 home health agencies as well.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, every year, an average 100-bed nursing home reports around 100-200 nursing home falls. Nearly 1,800 people living in nursing homes reportedly die in this country every year from injuries related to nursing home falls. Those nursing home residents with falls that are non-fatal can suffer serious nursing home injuries.
If you are worried that a friend or loved one staying at a nursing home in Maryland or the Washington D.C. area has suffered a nursing home fall due to nursing home negligence, contact our attorneys at Lebowitz and Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers for a free consultation. Call us at 1-800-654-1949.
Maryland Program Provides Road Map for Reducing Patient Falls, HealthLeaders Media, May 21, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Falls in Nursing Homes
Maryland Patient Safety Center: SAFE from FALLS Initiative