INTERNAL ASSIGNMENT
A. Quality Improvement and Fall Prevention
Older people, especially those beyond age 65, are more susceptible to falls because of poor eyesight, effects of medications, loss of muscle strength, and even environmental factors. Even though the Healthy People 2020 target was to reduce the number of emergency room visits for older adults related to falls, the number of such visits increased from just over 5,000 in 2005 to over 6,000 in 2015.
In this assignment, you will research data and best practices regarding falls by adults over the age of 65 and compile your findings into an executive summary suitable for leaders of a long-term-care facility for older people.
Step 1. Research
Research the incidence of falls, consequences, and the subsequent costs to the U.S. healthcare system. Follow up by researching similar data from your own practice site or that of your mentor. Document your findings with appropriate citations.
Step 2. Review
Visit and review the Healthy People 2020 website at https://www.healthypeople.gov/ (Links to an external site.). Familiarize yourself with the organization of the site.
Step 3. Compare
Review the data listed for the Older Adults OA-11 objective (see link on the Learning Objects page):
OA-11 Reduce the rate of emergency department (ED) visits due to falls among older adults.
How do the data compare to your findings from Step 1?
Step 4. Analyze
Research and analyze stakeholders, processes, and outcomes associated with Healthy People 2020’s objective OA-11. Refer to the resources linked on the Learning Objects page to critically analyze data regarding falls of elderly clients.
Step 5. Identify
Identify a change theory or quality improvement model which could be applied to address objective OA-11. Justify your selection of the theory or model.
Step 6. Investigate
Investigate evidence-based research addressing falls of older adults at home and in healthcare and long-term-care (LTC) facilities.
Step 7. Apply
Apply your work from Steps 1-6 to outline a summary of information needed to prevent falls by older adults in a long- term care (LTC) facility. Consider which staff members would be needed to integrate the research findings into a process change for the LTC facility.
Step 8. Compile
Compile your work from Steps 1-7 into a concise 1-2-page Executive Summary (not counting the required refences page) outlining your findings in a way appropriate for leaders and workers in an LTC facility. Your Executive Summary should include a bulleted list of research-based safety guidelines or practices.
B. Safety for Older Adults
Thanks to medical and wellness initiatives and improvements, Americans are generally living longer. In 2014, 14.5% (46.3 million) of the U.S. population was aged 65 or older and is projected to reach 23.5% (98 million) by 2060 (HealthyPeople.gov, 2019). As a result, more and more resources must be directed toward caring for an aging population.
In this assignment, you will expand your investigation of research data and evidence-based practices to encompass at least one other objective for older adults under the Healthy People 2020 initiative and develop a presentation of your findings for an appropriate audience.
Step 1. Review
Review your research for the Module 2 assignment and expand it to also address other healthcare issues of older adults in all healthcare settings. Use the Healthy People 2020: Older Adults “Overview” link provided on the Learning Objects page, and then review the other tabs: Objectives, Interventions & Resources, and National Snapshots.
Step 2. Select
Select an issue, topic, or condition for further analysis relating to healthcare for the older adult population based upon your review of the information on the Healthy People 2020 site. Also select a healthcare setting, such as a hospital setting, community health agency, or long-term-care (LTC) facility, or other setting.
Step 3. Formulate
Following procedures similar to those you performed for the Module 2 assignment, formulate a quality improvement plan for the issue, topic, or condition you selected in Step 2. Include a list of stakeholders (healthcare leaders and workers, family members, agency officials, etc.) needed to implement your plan.
Step 4. Identify
Identify financial and human considerations and needs for your plan. For example, determine the amount of money that will be needed to implement the plan and the number of people needed for this project.
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Step 5. Create
Create a presentation to enlist support and engagement from an interprofessional team to promote and implement your plan. Your presentation should include a title slide and an APA-formatted references slide.
Step 6. Narrate
Record a video of your presentation or write a script and provide associated slides to align with your script.
of each slide.