Editing question

[kemper]

> > Kemper:
> > My understanding of what the nurse is attempting to state is this:
> > A fall, like a medication error, is a problem with the policies and/or procedures of the organization/nursing home.

> Carol again:
> Thanks. I think that is more or less what she's trying to say but saying that a fall is a problem with procedures isn't all that clear, either. Certainly, falls aren't *caused by* policies or procedures although maybe the failure to implement some policy or procedure contributed in some way to the fall. I think she means that it's the job of the whole staff to prevent falls and to "manage" them when they occur (by which she means report them and investigate them as well as follow up with the patient who fell). I think my best bet is just to query and let the author revise the sentence as best she can.

Kemper now:
No, falls aren't caused by policies and procedures.  But they probably occur more frequently because policies and procedures either aren't being adhered to or are not in effect.

Many falls probably occur in a nursing home as the patient gets up from a sitting/laying position in order to use the bathroom.

A policy might exist that a CNA is to assist the patient.
This would place responsibility on the patient (who probably experiences a loss of some mental capacity) to inform staff.
The staff would then assist the patient following some procedure.
The policy might later be amended to state that the CNA (who should have better mental capacity) will assist/escort patient into the bathroom every two hours.
A separate staffing policy might be 1CNA:8patient.  This policy might be amended to a lower ratio to assure that patients are getting to bathroom every couple of hours.
This shift in policies could see a reduction in falls along with the added procedure of adding a time check-in with the patient.

Kemper