Celebrating Falls Awareness Week 2024

Dr Alasdair MacRae is a consultant Orthogeriatrician at Royal Alexandra Hospital, Paisley and is the Secretary of the BGS Falls and Bone Health Specialist Interest Group (SIG)  (as well as being the BGS Meetings Secretary and the Secretary of the Bowel and Bladder Health SIG). Dr Lisa Alcock is a Senior Research Associate at Newcastle University and leads the Gait Laboratory at an NIHR Clinical Research Facility (Clinical Ageing Research Unit). She is the Research Representative for the BGS Falls and Bone Health SIG. 

AM: I’m Alas(-a-)dair, a medic, that is a modern day doctor, and my job is to tell it how it is, or was…. Recently, I was at the BGS International Conference on Falls and Postural Stability, which was celebrating its 25th anniversary!  It was held in Nottingham, famous for the legend, Robin Hood. As a boy I would often sit on the floor next to my Gran’s record player, listening to the audio of the 1973 Walt Disney film (my favourite character was Alan-a-Dale, the wandering minstrel cockerel that narrated the story on long-playing record. I am pretty sure that some people will have never heard music played on vinyl. The medium by which music is listened to has changed a lot over the years. Tape cassettes (who remembers using a pencil to wind the tape back after it got tangled in the player?). Compact discs. MP3 files. In modern times, music can be streamed on portable devices. Now, that’s what I call music technology advancement!

Just as music media have changed over the years, fall prevention medicine has evolved too. Terminology such as “fall prevention” is changing towards “optimising safe mobility”. A positive change in language and attitude. Fall prevention is often associated with a risk-averse attitude, whereby people are discouraged from mobilising, so that they do not fall, consequently becoming deconditioned, further increasing fall risk. With the approach of optimising safe mobility, it is hoped that people are not discouraged from being physically active but instead advised and supported to do so, balancing the benefit with the risk of being up on their feet.

This year’s 25th International Conference on Falls and Postural Stability showcased posters and presentations of the excellent work that is being done around the UK and from around the world, such as Hong Kong, Japan and United States. I co-moderated the Use of Technology session and the platform presentations with the wonderful Dr Lisa Alcock, where we heard about various research projects - over to Lisa (who is a lot more clever than I am) to explain the science stuff.

LA: Thanks, Alasdair. As we celebrate 25 years of the BGS Falls and Postural Stability conference, we are amidst a digital health revolution, where the development of new technologies to enhance patient-centred healthcare and software applications ( ‘apps’) that enable patients to self-manage their own health are commonplace. Certainly, the world of falls research is no exception and the session on the ‘Use of Technology’ for fall prevention was timely. We had three fantastic speakers covering a variety of technologies and applications. Firstly, we heard about the use of acoustic sensors for monitoring residents in social care settings. These devices learn a resident’s usual nocturnal sounds then when they detect an unusual acoustic signal in the room, alert staff to check on the resident, who may be in need of assistance, with the intention of reducing the risk of falling. The technology has resulted in fewer physical checks by staff and a reduction in disturbed sleep for the residents.

The second talk presented a video consulting platform to reduce travel for those at risk of falling. While remote consultations are not suitable for all situations or patients, there are numerous benefits including reducing carer and patient burden, fatigue, and anxiety, as well as improving access to healthcare services for individuals who may live in rural areas, or those who have limited mobility or difficulties accessing transportation. The final talk of the session covered personalised exercise programmes to reduce fall risk, targeted specifically at older adults, in partnership with leisure centres and community venues. Delivering personalised healthcare digitally offers a scaleable approach that may be integrated within community services while promoting ‘healthy ageing’ and ‘safer mobility’.

There is no doubt that technology will form an integral part of healthcare moving forwards. The ‘Technology and Sustainability’ focus of the May / June 2024 edition of the BGS AGENDA magazine included a selection of articles covering hot topics related to technological innovations enhancing the care of our older generation. The magazine is free and available for BGS members that are interested in learning more.

AM: Thank you, Lisa for a great summary of the session. The conference was a fantastic learning experience and it was lovely being able to network with other people who are driven by a desire to help people optimise their mobility. If you are passionate about helping people mobilise safely, have you thought about joining the BGS Falls and Bone Health Specialist Interest Group? Or how about becoming a BGS Falls Group committee member (we would especially love to hear from primary care clinicians too)? If that doesn’t seem to be for you, how about doing something for Falls Awareness Week (23rd-27th September 2024)?

My health board has a theme this year of “Get Winter Ready”, where people will be advised on appropriate footwear, getting walking aids reviewed, how to walk in slippery conditions and more. I am going to visit a community workshop, which is being run by a local charity, to see the good work that they are doing for Falls Awareness Week. It doesn’t matter how big or small your event is, where it is, or even if it is just for an hour or so that week. As Tesco advertise, “Every little helps” - other supermarkets do exist!

Before we go, we have two dates for your diary:

1. British Geriatrics Society's International Conference on Falls and Postural Stability 2025 will be in Manchester (provisional date is Friday 19th September) and, excitingly,
2. The 3rd World Falls Congress (also in Manchester) 26-28 June 2026  will take place instead of the usual autumnal BGS Falls Conference that year, combining also with the EU Falls Festival and World Falls Prevention Meeting in 2026.

We hope to see you there!