MDS Alert

Published on Mon Aug 20, 2012 PDF

Unintentional change in position coming to rest on the ground, floor or onto the next lower surface (e.g., onto a bed, chair, or beside mat). The fall may be witnessed, reported by the resident or an observer or identified when a resident is found on the floor or ground. Falls include any fall, no matter whether it occurred at home, while out in the community in an acute hospital or a nursing home. Falls are not a result of an overwhelming external force (e.g., a resident pushes another resident).An intercepted fall occurs when the resident would have fallen if he or she had not caught him/herself or had not been intercepted by another person  this is still considered a fall.