A Role for Health Literacy in Protecting People With Limited English Proficiency Against Falling: A Retrospective, Cohort Study.

Autor:	Douglas NF; Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow College of Health Professions, Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, MI. Electronic address: natalie.douglas@louisiana.edu., Wallace SE; Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA., Cheng CI; Department of Statistics, Actuarial, and Data Sciences, College of Science and Engineering, Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, MI., Mayer NC; Inpatient Rehabilitation, Intermountain Health, Salt Lake City, UT., Hickey E; School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Faculty of Health Professions, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada., Minick K; Rehabilitation Services, Intermountain Health, Salt Lake City, UT.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation [Arch Phys Med Rehabil] 2025 Jan; Vol. 106 (1), pp. 37-41. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Aug 30.
DOI:	10.1016/j.apmr.2024.08.011
Abstrakt:	Objective: To identify risk factors related to falls within the scope of speech-language pathology (SLP) using assessments from the Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility-Patient Assessment Instrument over a 4-month period in 4 inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs). Design: Observational retrospective cohort study. Setting: Four IRFs as part of a larger learning health system. Participants: Adults aged ≥18 years admitted to the IRFs from October 1, 2022 to February 28, 2023 were included. Intervention: N/A. Main Outcome Measures: Occurrence of falls. Results: Analyses of 631 patient records revealed that the odds of falling were almost 3 times greater in people with limited English proficiency than in English speakers (odds ratio [OR], 2.92; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.09-6.85). People with limited English proficiency who reported poorer health literacy had 4 times higher odds of falling (OR, 3.90; 95% CI, 1.13-13.44) than English speakers who reported adequate health literacy. People with limited English proficiency who reported adequate health literacy had the same risk of falling as English speakers (OR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.16-6.12), suggesting the protective role of health literacy for people with limited English proficiency. Conclusions: Language barriers have a significant effect on falls among patients in IRFs. SLPs improving health literacy and providing language support may play a crucial role in mitigating fall risk, thereby enhancing patient safety and outcomes. (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
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