News (March 2006)

Debra Rose Receives 2006 Health Promotion Institute’s Best Practice Award from the National Council on Aging

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USC Fall Prevention Center Sends Three Representatives to The International Conference On Aging, Disability and Independence in St. Petersburg, Florida, February 1-5, 2006

The International Conference on Aging, Disability and Independence (ICADI) was held in St. Petersburg, Florida from February 1 – 5, 2006.  The aim of the conference was to help people around the world to maintain their independence by practicing healthy behaviors and health promotion activities as they age.  Symposiums were presented on the use of assistive technology, home modifications, products that follow the principles of universal design and successfully adapting the workplace environment.  The event brought together researchers, practitioners, business leaders and aging policy experts from all over the world. 

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Aging at Home: For a Lucky Few, a Wish Come True

Dr. Jon Pynoos, Co-Director of the Fall Prevention Center of Excellence and professor at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, was featured in a recent New York Times article entitled, "Aging at Home: For a Lucky Few, a Wish Come True." The story, which ran on Thursday, February 9, 2006, examined the brief history of the Beacon Hill Village, a nonprofit organization based in Boston, Massachusetts that was created by and for local residents determined to grow old in familiar surroundings.

Beacon Hill Village originated five years ago as the brainchild of a dozen civic-minded residents of the rustic 19th-century neighborhood. They wished to remain at their homes and independent from adult children when everyday activities such as household chores and transportation became too difficult.

The organization, which has benefited from advocates at the nearby Harvard Business School and other grants from wealthy members, now has 340 members ages 52 to 98, and an annual budget of $300,000. The yearly fee for members is $550 for an individual and $780 for a household, plus the additional cost of other services. But the question remains, writes author Jane Gross, whether or not similar, residential based, assisted living communities could flourish in lower income neighborhoods.

Leonard Davis School of Gerontology professor Jon Pynoos asserts that funding may be available for elderly communities in other, less affluent, areas through federal and state pilot programs that support seniors at home. He points to the United States Administration on Aging, which is currently paying for service coordinators at 60 "naturally occurring retirement communities," or NORCÕs. Even state Medicaid programs are giving vouchers to help purchase home care services, the article states, when Medicaid has historically been limited to nursing homes.

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VCH commits to new Fall Prevention Program

In order to prevent falls among older adults the Vancouver Coastal Health plans to spend $700,000 to the first year of a five year fall prevention program. There goal is to reduce fall-related injuries by 20 percent in 2010.

The safe environment prevention program will target seniors in Vancouver who live in either their own homes or in a residential and acute care institution. 

Every year approximately one third of all British Columbia older adults have a falling accident. According to the Vancouver Coastal Health every year approximately one third of all British Columbia older adults have a falling accident which results to about 3,000 hip fractures, 1,000 deaths and 10,000 hospitalizations. 

For more information: One in three seniors fall, Canadian Press

FRAT works!

In Western Australia, the Royal Perth Hospital uses nursing assessments and care planning in order to prevent senior adult falls.

A group at RPH which composed of nurses with aging care and medical division experience, research nurses, and an aged care physiotherapist conducted a study to develop an approach to falls prevention. There assessment is done through Falls Risk Assessment Tool (FRAT), an idea the group created.  

A total of 1357 patients over 65 years with an average admission time of eight days was a part of this study. These patients that were apart of the study was rated as low, medium or high falls risk. At each risk category, a specific amount of attention was paid to that physical environment, patient mobility and communication and elimination needs.

FRAT currently consists of five components: assessing the risk; criteria for identifying patients at risk; assessment; planning interventions and reassessment.

After the implementation of FRAT there were 80 percent less cases of falls injury within the hospital in comparison to the year before.

For more information: “Keeping patients on their toes,” Feb. 2006, Australian Nursing Journal

Understanding Your Foot Helps Fall Prevention

Aging is associated with changes to the structure and function of the foot and ankle, and there is preliminary evidence that foot problems impair balance and increase the risk of falls.

A study determines the relative contribution of several foot and ankle characteristics to performance on a range of balance and functional tests. One hundred seventy-six people (56 men and 120 women, mean age 80.1 years, standard deviation 6.4 years) residing in a retirement village underwent tests of foot and ankle characteristics (including foot posture, range of motion, strength, and deformity), sensorimotor function (including vision, sensation, strength, and reaction time), and balance and functional ability (including tests of standing balance, leaning balance, stepping, sit-to-stand, and walking speed). Many foot and ankle characteristics and sensorimotor measures were associated with performance on the balance and functional tests in univariate analyses.

Multiple regression analysis consistently revealed that ankle flexibility, plantar tactile sensitivity, and toe plantarflexor strength were significant and independent predictors of balance and functional test performance, explaining up to 59% of the variance in these test scores. Foot and ankle characteristics, particularly ankle flexibility, plantar tactile sensation, and strength of toe plantarflexor muscles, are significant independent predictors of balance and functional ability in older people.

Programs to improve the strength and flexibility of the foot and interventions to augment plantar sensation may be beneficial in improving mobility and reducing the risk of falls.