The Population ageing is a reality that comes gripped by complications related to aging, being in-hospital falls one of the most important, considering that they bring on a lot of negative consequences to the patient and his family as well as to the health system. The objective of this study was to assess and quantify, through the analyses of interviews with professionals responsible for the care of the patients at Santa Casa of Belo Horizonte, the occurrence of in-hospital falls. The interview was accomplished with 37 professionals(doctors, interns and nurses) through a semi-structured questionnaire which comprehended 11 questions related to the historical of falls in the sector, comprising information on the number of episodes, setting, time, patient age, activity performed at the moment, consequences, as well as questions regarding to environment adaptation. Data analysis conducted by means of descriptive statistics of the interviews showed that 65% of the employee reported the occurrence of falls. The majority (73%) of fallers was men, with mean age of 78, 62 years (SD +- 7, 63) and fell more in the morning (31%) and in the evening (31%), mainly in the room (48%) and in the bathroom (42%), being 50% of the episodes non-injurious. We conclude that falls episodes occur in the hospital setting, but are not reported adequately, showing the need of adoption of educational measures to the professional who deal with this population.
Elderly; falls; hospitalization
