Thinking falls - taking action: A guide to action for falls prevention

Abstract

Clinical guidelines and research papers help clinicians measure and understand the risk of falling in their older clients but very few provide the assessor with recommendations as to which intervention they can use to reduce the risk of a fall. The Guide to Action for Falls Prevention tool (GtA) was developed to help professionals from a broad range of organisations to recognise factors that might increase falls risk and know which actions to take to lessen that risk. Twenty four professionals tested the GtA in a clinical setting and found it quick (15 mins) and easy to complete. The GtA needs further evaluation to test whether it is a practical way of delivering a falls prevention intervention.