Cost of falls in aged care uncovered

Fall-related injuries in Australia’s residential aged care could be costing the health system $325 million annually, a University of Queensland study has revealed.

Dr Charles Okafor from UQ’s Centre for Health Services Research said the study found fall injuries accounted for 20 per cent of annual expenditure on an aged care resident between 2021-2022. 

“We monitored 303 people aged over 65 in aged care facilities in New South Wales and Western Australia, and found the average cost of a fall resulting in injury was around $2,500 dollars,” Dr Okafor said.

“A total of 281 residents had falls, but only 119 of the residents had fall injuries, so the potential cost of fall injuries to Australia’s health care system was $325 million dollars a year.

“Falls pose a significant financial burden but despite efforts to address the issue over the years, falls continue to remain a significant problem.”

The study also found body mass index (BMI) and gender were the two major factors linked to a high falls risk.

“We found male residents were twice as likely to suffer a fall related injury and those with a normal BMI were also at higher risk,” Dr Okafor said.

“Residents with a normal BMI are possibly more independent and not as closely monitored as those who could be overweight or underweight and less mobile.

"The falls risk profile is completely different for those living in the community which means we need different approaches for different populations.”

While a national prevention strategy is in place through the Australian and New Zealand Falls Prevention Society, Dr Okafor said more is needed to create a strategy specifically catering to aged care residents.

“Successful examples like the National Ageing Research Institute’s falls prevention in residential aged care workshops could be used as models for implementation nationwide," Dr Okafor said.

“This could come about by liaising with stakeholders to find out what the training needs of aged care staff are, the challenges they’re facing, and what could minimise costs.”

The research is published in Injury Prevention.

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