This British Medical Journal study, published May 11, evaluated whether services to prevent falls in the community could reduce the fall rate among older (aged 60+) people who call an ambulance when they fall but are not taken to the hospital. The study, titled “Community falls prevention for people who call an emergency ambulance after a fall: randomised controlled trial,” included 204 patients who were referred to a community fall prevention service.1
The researchers found that the “incidence rates of falls per year were 3.46 in the intervention group and 7.68 in the control group. The intervention group achieved higher scores on the Barthel index and Nottingham extended activities of daily living and lower scores on the falls efficacy scale (all P < 0.05) at the 12-month follow-up. The number of times an emergency ambulance was called because of a fall was significantly different during follow-up (incidence rate ratio 0.60, 95% confidence interval 0.40 to 0.92, P =0 .018).”
They concluded that community-based fall prevention services can reduce fall rates and improve clinical outcomes in elderly patients who have called for an ambulance after a fall.
Reference
- Logan PA , et al. Community falls prevention for people who call an emergency ambulance after a fall: randomised controlled trial. BMJ. 2010;340:c2102. doi:10.1136/bmj.c2102
