Methods. The study was performed in two medical units at a teaching hospital from January to March of 2017. In total, 165 patients participated in the study: n=90 (response rate, 90.0%) from the Cardiology Unit and n=75 (response rate, 75.0%) from the Neurology Unit. The Morse Fall Scale was employed to assess a fall risk of patients. To assess nursing problems, a special form was developed in relation to the literature review. The study protocol was approved by the Centre of Bioethics at the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences (no. BEC-SL(B)-161).

Results. Half (50.3%) of the patiens had a high fall risk. More frequently, patients had a high fall risk in the Neurology Unit (64.0%), and a minor fall risk was relevant to half of the patients (52.2%) from the Cardiology Unit. The Cardiology Unit patients under the age ≤44 years did not have any fall risk at all although half of the Neurology Unit patients (50.0%) of this age had a minor risk and one-third (33.3%) had a high fall risk.

In both units, the patients who did not have a fall risk walked without assistance. In the Cardiology Unit, 54.3% of the patients with a high fall risk walked with a stick or a cruch. More than half of the patients in both units (57.1% in the Cardiology Unit and 56.3% in the Neurology Unit) with a high risk of falls had sleep problems. The patients with no risk of falls had no fear of falling and those with a high risk of fall felt fear of fall frequently (respectively, 37.1% in the Cardiology Unit and 39.6% in the Neurology Unit). The patients with a high risk of falls in both departments more frequently had impaired urinary elimination – nocturia (60.0% in the Cardiology Unit and 68.8% in the Neurology Unit). The patients with a high risk of falls usually had more nursing problems.

Conclusions. A high risk of falls was revealed to be a problem not only for older adults but also for younger patients, especially in the Neurology Unit. The patients with a high risk of falls usually had more nursing problems; thus, fall risk assessment and management must be integrated in nursing care planning and implementation.