Multi-component fall prevention interventions for older adults

Evidence Rating  
Evidence rating: Scientifically Supported

Strategies with this rating are most likely to make a difference. These strategies have been tested in many robust studies with consistently positive results.

Health Factors  

Health care providers, such as primary care physicians and physical therapists, often deliver a fixed, multi-component set of fall prevention interventions to older adults living in community settings, as well as long-term care or clinical settings1. Interventions can be provided without individual risk assessments and typically include various combinations of exercise (i.e., balance, strength, and endurance training), education, home or environmental modification, medication management, and vitamin D supplementation1. Fall prevention efforts are covered as part of the Medicare Annual Wellness Visit2; providers may also connect patients to local fall prevention programs3. Falls can lead to physical injuries with long lasting effects, increased risk of early death, and psychological concerns such as fear of falling and loss of confidence4, 5.

What could this strategy improve?

Expected Benefits

Our evidence rating is based on the likelihood of achieving these outcomes:

  • Reduced falls

Potential Benefits

Our evidence rating is not based on these outcomes, but these benefits may also be possible:

  • Reduced injuries

What does the research say about effectiveness?

There is strong evidence that multi-component fall prevention interventions reduce the rate of falls and the risk of falling among older adults1, 5, 6, 7

Multi-component interventions have been shown to reduce falls in community and clinical settings1. Such efforts can reduce the rate and risk of falls for older adults who live independently in the community, and may also benefit those living in care facilities1, 8. Including an exercise component, particularly exercises that improve balance, may further reduce fall rates1, 6. Combining exercise and vision assessments with treatment may reduce injury rates6.

Multi-component interventions tailored to individual’s needs have consistently been shown to reduce falls for older adults in community settings7. Interventions that include home visits and correct home hazards also reduce fall risk for community-dwelling older adults without cognitive impairments8. Multi-component interventions that include calcium and vitamin D supplements have been shown to reduce falls6, 8 and fractures for older adults in community settings6.

Exercise-related multi-component interventions in care facilities benefit patients with cognitive impairments more than those without impairments8.

Implementation Examples

The National Council on Aging’s National Falls Prevention Resource Center supports fall prevention programs across the country and coordinates the Falls Free Initiative, which includes 50 state-level coalitions along with one in Washington, D.C.9, 10. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) older adult fall prevention program, STEADI (Stopping Elderly Accidents, Deaths, & Injuries), provides tools and educational materials for patients and providers on how to prevent falls11.

A Matter of Balance is a nationally recognized fall prevention program for older adults that teaches participants how to reduce their fall risk at home through exercises to improve strength and balance12.

Implementation Resources

NCOA-Falls prevention - National Council on Aging (NCOA). National Falls Prevention Resource Center.

CDC-STEADI - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). STEADI (Stopping Elderly Accidents, Deaths & Injuries) tools for health care providers and patients.

IHI-TCAB - Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI). Transforming Care at the Bedside how-to guide: Reducing patient injuries from falls.

CDC-Fall guide - National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC). Preventing falls: A guide to implementing effective community-based fall prevention programs. 2nd edition. Atlanta: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 2015.

CDC-Stevens 2015 - Stevens JA, Burns ER. CDC compendium of effective fall interventions: What works for community-dwelling older adults. 3rd edition. Atlanta: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC). 2015.

WIHA-Preventing falls - Wisconsin Institute for Healthy Aging (WIHA). Preventing falls: Materials and resources for falls prevention in your community.

Footnotes

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1 Goodwin 2014 - Goodwin VA, Abbott RA, Whear R, et al. Multiple component interventions for preventing falls and fall-related injuries among older people: Systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Geriatrics. 2014;14:15.

2 Van Voast Moncada 2017 - Van Voast Moncada L, Mire LG. Preventing falls in older persons. American Family Physician. 2017;96(4):240-247.

3 Phelan 2015 - Phelan EA, Mahoney JE, Voit JC, Stevens JA. Assessment and management of fall risk in primary care settings. Medical Clinics of North America. 2015;99(2):281-293.

4 CDC-Falls - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Older adult falls.

5 Cochrane-Gillespie 2012 - Gillespie LD, Robertson MC, Gillespie WJ, et al. Interventions for preventing falls in older people living in the community: Review. The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2012;(9):CD007146.

6 Tricco 2017 - Tricco AC, Thomas SM, Veroniki AA, et al. Comparisons of interventions for preventing falls in older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA. 2017;318(17):1687-1699.

7 Stubbs 2015 - Stubbs B, Brefka S, Denkinger MD. What works to prevent falls in community-dwelling older adults? Umbrella review of meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials. Physical Therapy. 2015;95(8):1095-1110.

8 Guo 2014 - Guo JL, Tsai YY, Liao JY, Tu HM, Huang CM. Interventions to reduce the number of falls among older adults with/without cognitive impairment: An exploratory meta-analysis. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. 2014;29(7):661-669.

9 NCOA-Falls prevention - National Council on Aging (NCOA). National Falls Prevention Resource Center.

10 NCOA-Falls Free Initiative - National Council on Aging (NCOA). National Falls Prevention Resource Center. Falls Free Initiative.

11 CDC-STEADI - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). STEADI (Stopping Elderly Accidents, Deaths & Injuries) tools for health care providers and patients.

12 MaineHealth-MOB - MaineHealth. A Matter of Balance (MOB): Reduce the fear of falling and increase activity levels among older adults.

Date last updated