Focus on preventing falls

MORE than 100 clinicians, aged care providers, community members and academics gathered in Ballina last week to learn how to further support older people in Northern NSW.

The NSW Falls Preventions and Healthy Ageing Network Rural Forum, held at the Ballina RSL, brought together key stakeholders to work through some of the complex issues affecting older Australians.

Northern NSW Local Health District’s Director of Nursing and Midwifery Katharine Duffy said older people were disproportionately represented among hospital inpatients.

“People aged over 65 account for nearly 50 per cent of overnight hospital stays, yet are 24 per cent of our population,” she said.

“Locally, our clinicians are reporting that older people are presenting with higher levels of co-morbidity and functional decline than has been seen in the past.

“There is strong evidence that falls can be reduced by up to 34 per cent within 12 months when there is coordinated action on fall prevention.

“Bringing people together at the Rural Falls Forum is one way to coordinate action on falls prevention in our community, in our hospitals and aged care facilities.”

Presenters included one of Australia’s leading falls researchers Professor Cathie Sherrington, the senior principal research fellow at the University of Sydney’s Faculty of Medicine and Health.

Rotarian and resident Bob Barnes and his son David also presented at the forum. They have been working in partnership with the NSW Falls Prevention and Healthy Ageing Network, the Clinical Excellence Commission, NNSWLHD and Rotarians across the district.

“It burdens me to tell you that my own dear wife, Helen, had a fall during the night,” Mr Barnes said.

“It’s unsettling to be in your pyjamas at 3am with paramedics in your bedroom.

“I speak on behalf of the older generations of Aussies and to help get a message to Australia; falls are a major issue.”

Falls account for the highest health system costs for injury and are more than double that of road trauma.

In 2021, the cost to the NSW health system from falls by older people in the community was around $752 million.

The costs are projected to grow to $1.09 billion by 2041 due to around 60,300 projected hospitalised falls.