Management Process of Fear of Falling Among Hospitalized Older Patients with Fall Experience.

Abstract

This study sought to explore the management process of FOF among the older adults patients hospitalized due to falls. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were performed with 21 older patients. Three types of coping strategies were developed by hospitalized older adults: primary management of explaining the reason of falls by attributing it to inevitable consequence of aging as well as accidental events; secondary management of fear including self-consolation, downstairs comparison and distraction from fear, as well as confronting and reflecting fear; and tertiary management of the consequences of falling such as active rehabilitation, food therapy, seeking emotional support etc.