UVic leads national study on fall prevention in the elderly

by Maria Lironi

UVic is receiving $200,000 from Health Canada's Population Health Fund to conduct a two-year national study on fall prevention among the elderly in long-term care settings.

Falls are the most frequent cause of injury-related hospitalization and account for a majority of injury-related deaths among Canadian seniors. As Canada's senior population continues to grow, the incidence of falls and fall-related injuries and the associated costs are expected to increase accordingly. The goal of this project is to reduce falls and related injuries among residents of long-term care facilities in pilot sites in B.C., Ontario and Nova Scotia.

Drs. Vicky Scott and Elaine Gallagher, who lead the adult injury management network in UVic's Centre on Aging, are recognized leaders in the field of falls and fall-related injury prevention among older people. They'll be directing the 22-month study.

Project partners include the B.C. Injury Research and Prevention Unit, the Institute on Health of the Elderly at the University of Ottawa, and the School of Nutrition and Dietetics at Acadia University.

"Seniors are falling every day and they're hurting themselves," says Scott, "and little is being done to stop them from falling. We need to know more about best practices for prevention. That's why this study is a good start."

On average, half of all nursing home residents will fall at least once each year and over 10 per cent of these will result in serious injuries, including up to five per cent resulting in fractured bones. Causes of these falls reflect a combination of factors, many of which can be reduced or eliminated.

"This study follows on the heels of a pilot study carried out at Oak Bay Lodge in Victoria, where the rate of falls is far higher than among community-dwelling seniors," says Gallagher. "Even though we now know many of the causes of falls, it's a challenge to create interventions that will reduce their frequency or severity. This study will enable us to test some innovative approaches and add to the body of knowledge concerning prevention. It's an exciting opportunity."