Abstract
Background:
Patient falls in acute care settings is a challenge for the nurse staff in somatic hospitals. Despite of this there is little research about nurse's experience of falls.
Aim:
The purpose of the article is to increase insight about how nurses in somatic hospitals experience patient falls.
Method:
The study is a qualitative, descriptive design based on individual interviews with seven nursing staff in a hospital in Southern Norway. The participants were in addition encouraged to bring photography, which could illustrate their bodily experiences. The interviews were audio taped and transcribed verbatim and analyzed based on Kvale and Brinkmann.
Findings:
The analyses revealed that nurses' experiences can be described in two main themes: bodily reactions and vulnerable feelings. The overall interpretation of the findings can be summerised in the expression; the sound of the fall.
Conclusion:
The sound of fall deeply touched the nurses both their body and their feelings.