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co-lead Dr. Fabio Feldman who is the Manager of Seniors Fall and Injury Prevention at Fraser Health (and a former student of Dr. Robinovitch’s at SFU). The PRED-FALL team is testing the concept through a clinical trial in 150 rooms in a care facility — half were randomized to get compliant flooring, and half were renovated with a control flooring. The results will not be known until later this year, but research in the lab would indicate that it could make a real difference on the frequency of hip fractures and head injuries. “It’s a relatively simple but promising intervention,” says Dr. Feldman. Compliant flooring represents a shift that Dr. Feldman promotes — especially for long-term care — from thinking not only about fall prevention, but also injury prevention. “There is a risk that, if staff focus only on fall prevention, they may dis-
INJURIES SUFFERED BY OLDER ADULTS IN FALLS COST ABOUT $3.5 BILLION A YEAR IN CANADA. ABOUT 25 PER CENT OF OLDER ADULTS WHO BREAK THEIR HIPS WILL DIE WITHIN THE YEAR courage residents from physical activity because they’re afraid the person is going to fall. And then quality of life goes down for the residents,” says Dr. Feldman. “An advantage of the flooring is, once it is installed, you don’t need to rely on user acceptance and adherence in adopting the technology — it’s what we refer to as a “passive” form of prevention. Of course, we need evidence on clinical and cost effectiveness to support installations. These are two outcomes of our clinical trial.”
Along with the examination of existing products, the researchers are designing their own versions of compliant flooring. They are seeking to strike a balance — to create something that will cushion falls, but not be so soft as to limit the movement of wheelchairs and other equipment, or impair balance. In addition, PRED-FALL is developing the next generation of wearable hip protectors. Even though hip protectors have been shown to be effective, reducing the risks of fractures by as much as 80 per cent, the challenge has been convinc-
ing people to wear them consistently. In addition to comfort and appearance, the garments require frequent laundering, and can complicate toileting. Dr. Feldman says that their solution is to eliminate the garment and instead use pads that attach directly to the person’s skin using skin-friendly double-sided tape. It means that the pads can be worn for up to 21 days and do not need to be removed for visits to the bathroom. The product is undergoing clinical trials and a local company is poised to get it to market. Now, many years after watching his grandmother cope with the fear of falling, Dr. Robinovitch takes satisfaction in pursuing research that is preventing older people from fall-related injuries. “It’s immensely valuable to me that our work is contributing knowledge that could improve the lives of older adults. It’s a major motivation for me.” LC
Sean Mallen is a Toronto-based writer and communications consultant. AGE-WELL is a federally funded Network of Centres of Excellence that is harnessing the power of new technologies to benefit older adults and caregivers. The pan-Canadian network brings together researchers, industry, nonprofits, government, care providers and end-users to develop solutions for healthy aging. For more information, visit http://agewell-nce.ca/
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FEBRUARY 2018 Home and LongTerm Care News 7