Learning to cut the risk of falls

Lecturer Peter Unwin is currently briefing NHS administrators after carrying out a detailed comparison between how the Malvern Hills area and the city of St Catherines, in the Niagara region, approach the problem.

Falls among elderly people often result in broken bones, requiring hospital treatment costing the billions of pounds a year.

To raise the awareness of the problem, Mr Unwin, a senior lecturer in health and care at University College Worcester (UCW), travelled to St Catherines. He chose Canada because it has a more community-based approach to preventing accidents among senior citizens.

"In the UK, we tend to think of falls among elderly people just as a health problem," he said. "Niagara is the only place in the world I've found that takes a community-based approach.

"Over there, they have a scheme where they watch over each other's houses, similar to Neighbourhood Watch over here.

"We might think that's a bit nosy but it's the kind of thing we need to do. They also regard falls as a major topic and it's constantly highlighted in the media and by health workers.

"I want the profile of avoiding falls to be as high here as it is there. Everyone who visits an elderly person's home should be looking out for potential hazards such as uneven paving stones, loose rugs and old medi-cation - mixing medication is a prime cause of falls."

Alcohol can also be a factor.

Mr Unwin's conviction that we need to reassess our attitudes and approach to the subject is borne out by some alarming statistics.

"As we get older, our muscles get weaker and our bones more brittle, especially with osteoporosis," explained Allison Rex, health promotion co-ordinator for Worcestershire NHS Trust.

"The worst break that can happen as a result of a fall is a fractured hip. Each hospital admission for people with this injury costs in the region of £12,000 which, in the Malvern Hills area alone, amounts to £1 million per year. Nationally, the figure is closer to £1.7 billion.

"Osteoporosis is not just a problem for women, either. Despite the fact that nearly four times as many women as men contract the disease, 12 per cent of men admitted to hospital with the injury die there.

Dangerous

"The problem is going to grow more serious as the population ages. The over-55 section of the population of the Malvern Hills area is predicted to grow by 15 per cent by 2010, to some 17,000 people."

Thanks to the work of Mr Unwin, Miss Rex and health promotion agencies in the Malvern Hills area, steps are already being taken to counter the problem.

A handyman scheme, operated with Lottery funding, means that when an elderly person needs a minor job doing that could be potentially dangerous - like changing lightbulbs or hanging curtains - a handyman will come round and do it for them. As well as performing whatever tasks need doing, he or she will also check for potential hazards, in exactly the way Mr Unwin specifies.

Jayne Barry, a co-ordinator for Age Concern, said: "We've just purchased six personal alarms that people can carry around with them and press if they do fall.

"They will be loaned out on a monthly basis."

Despite a budget of hundreds, which seems even smaller when set against the potential savings of millions, Miss Rex is determined to do what she can to make people aware of the dangers cause by falling.

She is undaunted by the massive task she faces of changing people's attitudes.

"Anything we can do, and anything anyone else can do, no matter how small, is a step in the right direction," she said.

A campaign will take place over Christmas, and another in spring, along with a booklet she is trying to put together advising elderly people where they can go to take exercise.

"Exercise improves muscle strength, balance and co- ordination, all of which help you stay on your feet," said Miss Rex.

She appealed for owners of sports and exercise clubs open to elderly people to get in touch with her, as she wants to release a booklet advertising them.

Miss Rex can be contacted on 01684 892 191.