The effectiveness of a recurrent fall prevention program applied to elderly people undergoing fracture treatment.

Worldwide 30–40% of people aged of 65 and over fall each year. It is important to develop preventive interventions for falls in the elderly to prevent injuries leading to mortality and morbidity. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a recurrent fall prevention program in elderly individuals undergoing fracture treatment. A pretest-posttest intervention study. A recurrent fall prevention program including assessment of fall risk factors, education on falls and home modifications was developed for elderly people undergoing fracture treatment for 52 patients. In the first evaluation before the delivery of the recurrent fall prevention program, the number of risk factors was 17.63 ± 3.40 as mean ± standart deviation. Following implementation of the fall prevention program, the number of risk factors decreased to 15.73 ± 3.19 in the first follow-up and decreased to 14.92 ± 3.06 in the second follow-up. Knowledge scores increased to 6.09 ± 1.65 in the first follow-up and to 6.71 ± 1.53 in the second follow-up, while it was 5.50 ± 1.54 in first evaluation. The differences between follow-ups were statistically significant. During the 3-month study period, 15.4% of participants experienced fall. The recurrent fall prevention program was effective in reducing fall-related risk factors and increase fall knowledge. Health care professionals should assess older people for fall risk factors and increase their awareness for falls. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]