Older Adults With a 'Fall Prevention Plan' Less Likely to End Up in Hospital

A study published in The Gerontologist found older adults at risk for falls are less likely to require fall-related hospitalizations when they have a "fall plan of care," reports Medical Xpress . "Fall prevention activities such as raising awareness about fall risk, identifying individual risk for fall, discussing fall risk prevention strategies, and providing referrals to fall risk reduction programs in the community for older adults were shown to reduce fall-related hospitalizations," says Binghamton University Professor Yvonne Johnston. "As a result of these interventions, older adults may be more conscious of conditions that contribute to falls, take steps to modify their home environment to reduce fall risk, and participate in falls prevention programs and physical activities that improve strength and balance. These steps, what we called development of a Fall Plan of Care, likely contributed to the observed lower rates of fall-related hospitalizations for older adults who were identified as being at risk for fall." The team classified older adults screened for fall risk into three groups, including at-risk and no Fall Plan of Care (FPOC), at-risk with a FPOC, and not-at-risk. They showed that older adults at-risk for fall with a FPOC were 0.6 times less likely to have a fall-related hospitalization compared to those without a FPOC, and their post-intervention chances were similar to those who were not at risk. Johnston says the work demonstrates that healthcare systems can successfully deploy fall prevention screening and referral for older adults in the primary care setting.