This case study from the Health Foundation’s May 2013 newsletter explains how John Pathy Day Hospital, in Cardiff, is reducing visits to A and E through and integrated healthcare programme that helps older people reduce their risks of falls.

For an older person, a fall can be the start of a long-term decline in health. After falling, many people lose their confidence and end up housebound and isolated. So, reducing the risk of falls is an important factor in helping older people remain healthy and independent.

But it’s not straightforward. Falls are often caused by a combination of many different things, including side-effects of medication, low blood pressure, poor muscle tone and unsafe environments.

When an older person is referred to the John Pathy Day Hospital in Cardiff, they receive a comprehensive geriatric medical assessment that looks at their wider health issues and any medication they are taking. They are then referred to the occupational therapists, physiotherapists, and may also see dieticians, speech therapists and others, all of whom are under one roof for ease of access.