LLEIDA

Nurse in charge:  Mª Angeles Costa Menén. Infermera Àrea Bàsica de Salut Onze de Setembre de Lleida, Institut Català de la Salut

Lleida subproject lead researcher: Joan Blanco Blanco. Grup de recerca en cures de la Salut (GRECS- IRBLleida)

National project lead researcher: Laura Albornós Muñoz

Entity/Agency in charge: Investén-isciii  Instituto de Salud Carlos III

Description

Falling down is the leading cause of injuries in people older than 65. Falls are one of the major geriatric syndromes, as well as an indicator of frailty.

This project, coordinated by Investén-ISCiii, has been carried out simultaneously in Onze de Setembre Health Centre and 19 other Spanish health centres. The main goal of the program is to compare the incidence of falls among people between 65 and 80 years old, who follow the Otago (OEP) exercises program in group instead of practising them individually.

The Otago program includes exercises of strength and balance, is progressive and is mainly instructed by primary care nurses, who are in charge of supervising, training and monitoring participants for a year.

Participant nurses have been certified as instructors, by a cascade system OEP_LLT, based on the program developed by Later Life Training (LLT). The activity of the centre has been reorganized, to fit both individual and group program sessions into the daily consultation routines.

The Otago program has been chosen as an intervention due to the existing evidence of its effectiveness to reduce the risk of falling and for the experience gathered by the main promoters of the project: Investén and the Carlos III Health Institute.

This two institutions in collaboration with other organizations have also taken part of the European action for the prevention of falls in the frame of the European project ProFouND since 2012, providing with translation of documents, videos and other materials for the training of professionals in the Otago Exercise Program (EPO).

The program has achieved milestones throughout its implementation. For example, it has improved the training of the centre’s team of professionals for the prevention of falls. It has also made possible to obtain additional material to carry on with this kind of interventions improving the attention given to patients. Finally, it has also made possible to open the centre’s own research line that will continue to generate evidence in the implementation of fall prevention programs in the community. People involved in the program tell the nurses that they see their participation as an opportunity for the improvement of their own health.

More information on the project only available in Catalan/ Spanish