Structural Analysis of Variables related to Fall Prevention Behavior of Registered Nurses in Small-to-Medium Sized Hospitals

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study was to build a model to predict the fall prevention behavior of nurses in small and medium sized hospitals. Methods Participants were 382 nurses from 13 hospitals who responded to the structured self-reported questionnaire. The research model was based on previous study of fall prevention, theory of planned behavior, and the health belief model. Results The modified model generally showed higher levels than recommended level of model fit indices and acceptable explanation. Of 17 hypothetical paths, 14 were supported. Predicting variables explained 51.6% of fall prevention behavior. The fall prevention behavior of nurses showed a direct influence of fall prevention expectations, fall prevent threats, perceived behavioral control for fall prevention, and intention to prevent falls and an indirect of influence of patient safety culture, attitude toward fall prevention, and the subjective norm. Conclusion Findings show a need to identify a range of barrier factors to increase the benefits of fall prevention behavior and enhance the perceived control of fall prevention so that nurses will be able to promote fall prevention behavior in hospitals. Also, it is critical to increase awareness of patient safety culture among nurses. 주요어: 낙상, ì‚¬ê³ ì˜ˆë°©, 건강행위, í™˜ìžì•ˆì „ Key words: Accidental falls, Accident prevention, Health behavior, Safety management