TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2006//
TI  - The financial implications of falls in older people for an acute hospital
JO  - Irish journal of medical science
A1  - Cotter, P. E.
A1  - Timmons, Stephen
A1  - O'Connor, M.
A1  - Twomey, C.
A1  - O'Mahony, D.
SP  - 11
EP  - 13
VL  - 175
IS  - 2
N2  - BACKGROUND: Falls are a common occurrence in older people and frequently lead to hospital admission. There is a current lack of cohesive fall prevention strategies in the Republic of Ireland. AIM: To demonstrate the cost of fall-related admissions to an acute hospital. METHODS: A review of Hospital Inpatient Enquiry (HIPE) data and medical case notes was performed for all fall-related admissions over a one-year period. The cost of fall-related admissions was calculated. In addition a detailed cost analysis was performed to determine the true cost of a hip fracture admission. RESULTS: There were 810 fall-related admissions, resulting in 8,300 acute bed days, and 6,220 rehabilitation bed days, costing euros 10.3 million. Fall-related readmissions resulted in 650 bed-days, bringing the total cost to euros 10.8 million. A typical hip fracture incident admission episode costs euros 14,300. CONCLUSION: Fall-related admissions of olderpeople are a significant financial burden to the health service.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0021-1265
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/
ID  - ref1
ER  -