Incidence of adverse incidents in residential aged care (19 October 2021)

Summary

Adverse incident research within residential aged care facilities (RACFs) is increasing and there is growing awareness of safety and quality issues. However, large-scale evidence identifying specific areas of need and at-risk residents is lacking. This study from St Clair et al. used routinely collected incident management system data to quantify the types and rates of adverse incidents experienced by residents of RACFs.

Content

The study found that of the 60 268 adverse incidents, falls were the most common event (36%), followed by behaviour-related events (33%), other impacts and injuries (22%) and medication errors (9%). The number of adverse incidents per resident ranged from 0 (42%) to 171, with a median of 2. Women and residents with low care needs were significantly less likely to adverse incidents compared with men and residents with high care needs respectively.

This study demonstrates that data already collected within electronic management systems can provide crucial baseline information about the risk levels that adverse incidents pose to older Australians living in RACFs.