BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Patient fallis one of the prevalent events in the hospitals and is a complex challenge that hospitals face continuously. The aim of this study was integrative review about falling among hospital inpatients.

METHODS: Iranian electronic databases comprised of scientific information Database (SID), Iranian Newspapers and magazines database (Magiran) and medical Articles Database of Iran (IranMedex) with keywords of fall, inpatient, hospital. We also used foreign electronic databases comprised Google, Google Scholar, Elsevier with keywords of fall, injury, inpatient, hospital and fall risk. From 1325 citations during two stage application based on inclusion and exclusion criteria, title and abstract in the first stage and full text in the second stage were assessed and finally 30 full text articles were included in the review. The studies from 2006 to 2013 were assessed and only two studies were done in our country.

FINDINGS: The most studies were descriptive and retrospective. The number of experimental and quasi experimental studies was limited to about one and seven studies were review. Tools for data collection in most studies were questionnaires, medical and nursing records and fall risk assessment tools. Most studies focused on falling among old hospital inpatients and emphasized on fall risk factors and its prevention. Risk factors of falling among hospital inpatients contain personal factors and external factors (unsafe environment of hospital).

CONCLUSION: Since patient fall is the most common events in the hospitals and there are little studies in this filed in our country, so we recommend doing the research in this field to identify high risk patients and with a suitable prevention programme reduce fall rate in the hospitals.