Falls Prevention: Translating
Research into Action
Ileana Arias, Ph.D.
Director
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
March 2008
TM
The Burden of Injury
• Each year 30 million people experience a nonfatal
injury serious enough to require a visit to an
emergency department.
• Hospital emergency departments treat an average
55 people for injuries every minute.
• Medical expenditures for injuries are approximately
$117 billion dollars annually, about 10% of medical
spending in the US.
• $406 billion in medical expenses and lost
productivity
Total Cost of Injury by Mechanism
Other Motor Vehicle/other road user
24% 22%
Firearm/gunshot Fall
9% 20%
Drowning/submersion
1%
Poisoning
6%
Fire/Burn
2%
Cut/pierce
4% Struck by/against
12%
Fatal and Nonfatal Fall Injuries
Among People 65+
14,900 1% - Died
1.8 million
{ 473,000
1,360,000
26% - Treated in ED
& hospitalized
74% - Treated in
ED & released
Fall-related
? Millions
injuries
Percentage Change in Death Rates for the Leading Causes of
Unintentional Injury, by Mechanism of Injury --
United States, 1999--2004
-25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70
0.0 Motor vehicle traffic (MVT)
Motorcycle (as part of MVT)
Mechanism of injury
62.5
61.4 Poisoning
29.2 Fall
0.0 Suffocation/Choking
-15.4 Fire/Burn
-15.4 Drowning
6.5 All unintentional injury
% change
Financial Cost
In 2000, total direct medical cost of all fall
injuries among people 65+
– $19 billion
Medicare costs for hip fractures
– $2.9 billion in 1991
– $240 billion projected for 2040
What’s Needed?
• Dissemination and evaluation of proven
interventions as community programs
• Dissemination of prevention materials to
health care providers and community
organizations
• Widespread adoption
Proven Interventions:
What Works?
• Exercise that improves lower
body strengthen and balance
• Medication review with
modification
• Education about risk factors
• Vision correction
• Reduce home hazards
Check for Safety: A Home Fall
Prevention Checklist for Older Adults
• 16-page booklet
– Question and answer
format
– Guide people through
each room of their home
– Identify possible fall
hazards
What You Can Do To Prevent Falls
• Quad-fold brochure and posters
• Highlights four key messages:
– Begin a regular exercise program
– Have your health care provider review
your medicines
– Have your vision checked
– Make your home safer
Fall Related TBI Campaign
• Raising awareness of prevention,
recognition and response
• Fact sheet, brochure and booklet
• Primarily geared toward caregivers of
older adults
• Developing various strategies to
disseminate and promote the initiative
through event planning and media
outreach tools, social networking
sites, e-cards
• Launch in March 2008-Brain Injury
Awareness Month
Compendium of Effective Community-
Based Interventions
• 14 interventions with
proven effectiveness
in reducing falls
among older adults.
• Provides details about
interventions that use
exercise, home
modification, or
multifaceted
strategies.
Falls Prevention Program: User Guide
• Provides community-based
organizations a guide for
developing fall prevention
programs
• Describes the building
blocks of effective fall
prevention programs
– Examples
– Resources
– Tips for program creation,
promotion, and evaluation
In Conclusion…
• Falls among older adults have significant
short term and long term implications for
health
• CDC is working to identify and implement
effective strategies for preventing falls and
related injuries
• It is important to create a social context
which values the widespread availability
and implementation of programs