This is a short report about falls among people in advanced age using findings from the Life and Living in Advanced Age Cohort Study (LiLACS NZ).
Falls in advanced age: Findings from LiLACS NZ presents key findings about falls in the previous 12 months, injury and hospitalisation from falls, and physiotherapy use for Māori (aged 80 to 90 years) and non-Māori (aged 85 years).
The findings are from a population-based sample of people in advanced age living in the Bay of Plenty, who are taking part in a longitudinal study of advanced ageing, called Life and Living in Advanced Age: a Cohort Study in New Zealand – Te Puā waitanga O Ngā Tapuwae Kia Ora Tonu (LiLACS NZ).
The report is available on the LiLACS NZ publications website.
Overview of key findings
- More than a third (37%) of people in advanced age fell in the previous 12 months.
- Among those who fell one in five (20%) had to go to the hospital because of their fall.
- Twenty percent of people had fallen more than once.
- Among those who fell, physiotherapy use was low.
This information will assist the health sector, especially health policy analysts, planners and health care providers from District Health Boards, Primary Health Organisations, Māori health providers to plan and deliver services to people in advanced age.