[Care for the elderly with frequent falls: the fall clinic in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, the Netherlands].
A fall-clinic forms part of the fall-prevention program in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen. In this paper it is explained how elderly who are prone to falling are examined in the fall-clinic to find the underlying cause of their fall problem. The complete examination is termed the fall-risk analysis (FRA). In a six year period 121 elderly visited the fall-clinic. On average they were 78 +/- 8 years of age (mean +/- standarddeviation) and 76% was female. An insufficient muscle force of the hip flexors was the most prominent limitation that could be related to the increased fall risk. Based on the FRA on average 4.3 +/- 1.7 actions were proposed, where a referral to a specialist or physical therapist was most frequently proposed. The fall-clinic is integrated into existing structures of the Dutch health care services. Additional attention is given to case finding by means of district-nurses and family physicians. In this way a highly qualitative health care chain is being created for the falling elderly.
Faber
M
M
Post-doc onderzoeker, Faculteit der Bewegingsweten-schappen, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam.
Vet-Heijne
F
F
D000056:Accident Prevention / Q000379:methods*; D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000368:Aged; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006299:Health Services for the Aged / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009426:Netherlands; D004856:Postural Balance / Q000502:physiology*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors