Pulling the players together to reduce falls injuries

While opening the health service’s inaugural Falls Injury Prevention Forum today, Hunter New England Health Acting Chief Executive Dr Nigel Lyons highlighted some startling figures.

Every day about 165 older people present to one of Hunter New England Health’s emergency departments following a fall and as many as 14 of these people die each year as a result of their fall.

"Based on projections, if we do not act on preventing the number of falls now, we will need 800 additional hospitals beds and 1200 residential aged care beds in the next 40 years in NSW. This is just to cater for the expected increase in falls events resulting from the demographic trends of an ageing population," Dr Lyons said.

"As a consequence of these realities – in the NSW State Plan and the NSW Health Plans – prevention of falls injuries is considered everybody’s business," he said.

Earlier this year Hunter New England Health released its Falls Prevention Implementation Plan, which reflects the need for a wide range of people to engage in prevention of falls.

"This includes our clinicians, residential aged care facilities, general practitioners, community care providers and businesses. As is the case with most health challenges in front of us, we need to have a collective response.

"Today’s forum is an early result of the work of our implementation working group that is working across health facilities, residential aged care and community settings to bring these plans to fruition," he said.

Dr Lyons thanked the 175 participants from across the wider Hunter New England Health region for their commitment to helping to reduce the personal and financial burden of falls and fall injury in older people.

During the morning a range of speakers will provide participants with information on topics including:

The afternoon will host three concurrent sessions for people working in hospital, residential aged care facilities or community settings. The groups will discuss issues ranging from minimising falls in hospital and nursing homes, Vitamin D and calcium intake, rehabilitation and the role of physical activity, as well as many other topics.