MedPath

Interdisciplinary Falls Prevention for Seniors

Phase 1
Completed
Conditions
Injuries
Interventions
Other: Falls Prevention
Registration Number
NCT00463658
Lead Sponsor
Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation
Brief Summary

With an aging population, an associated increase in the number of falls and fall injuries, there is a need to examine how health care services, such as home care, can best prevent falls among older people. This project will directly address this area by evaluating the effects and expense of an innovative approach to home care service delivery for older people at-risk for falls.

Detailed Description

Falls and fall injuries are common-potentially preventable-causes of mortality, morbidity, functional decline, and increased health-care use and cost among community-living seniors over 75 years of age.

The knowledge gained from this project will directly address the Canadian Patient Safety Institute's priority areas for research in the Applied Health Services Research Stream by evaluating an innovative approach to reducing adverse events in a community-based (home care) setting.

The project will also identify the prevalence, determinants and costs of falls and fall injuries among older people requiring home care services. The design will be a two-armed; single blind randomized controlled trial of 110 older people 75 years and over, at risk for falls receiving hom care in Ontario. Subjects will be randomly allocated to either usual home care (control) or the interdisciplinary team. In the interdisciplinary group, a team of professional home care service providers, with specialized training in falls prevention, will proactively provide a comprehensive, coordinated and evidence based approach to falls prevention. The results will inform policies and practice related to the allocation and delivery of home care services for falls prevention across Canada.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
109
Inclusion Criteria
  • Must be English speaking
  • 75 years of age and over
  • Newly referred to and eligible for personal support services
  • Living at home in the community
  • Identified as being at risk for falls
Exclusion Criteria
  • Refusal to give informed consent
  • Unable to read/write English and a translator is not available

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
1Falls PreventionSubjects in the interdisciplinary group received home care services from a team of professional service providers (CCAC Case Manager, Registered Nurse, Occupational Therapist, Physiotherapist, Registered Dietician) with experience and training in falls prevention. The team provided a comprehensive, coordinated and evidence based approach to falls prevention through regular home visits, weekly case conferencing, a single accessible fall prevention plan,and joint client visits.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Number of self-reported falls: Falls surveillance report10 minutes
Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Health-Related Quality of Life and Function: SF-36 Health Survey15-20 minutes
Gait and Balance: Performance-Oriented Mobility Assessment10 minutes
Depression: Centre for Epidemiological Studies in Depression Scale5-10 minutes
Standardized Mini Mental State Examination20-25 minutes
Confidence in Performing Activities of Daily Living: Modified Falls Efficacy Scale5-10 minutes
Nutritional risk: Screen II Questionnaire10-15 minutes
Cost of Use of Health Services: Health and Social Services Utilization Questionnaire20 minutes
Caregiver burden: Caregiver Strain Index5-10 minutes

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

McMaster University - Faculty of Health Sciences at Frid

🇨🇦

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

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