ABSTRACT
Elderly persons suffering dementia are at increased risk for falls. Because of this, an investigation of the state of the science and the state of the art in fall prevention in patients suffering dementia has been made. A systematic literature review showed lack of documentation of effective interventions in preventing falls in persons with cognitive impairment. This was the reason for studying which measures nurses undertake in the field of long-term-care. Focus-group interviews with experienced geriatric nurses were undertaken. Nurses assume that there are specific risk factors in this patient group which have to be taken into account. Cognitive deficits are causing an increased fall risk in a specific manner. Geriatric nurses have ideas about how to adapt interventions for persons with dementia. They also assume that interventions primarily addressing cognitive disorders may also reduce the risk of falling. The interventions mentioned by the interviewed experts have not yet been examined concerning their effectiveness, therefore, fall prevention for people with dementia has to be further differentiated and systemized on a scientific basis.
