# Examining the impact of a health report card on follow through with fall risk recommendations: an observational study

## TL;DR

This study examines how providing older adults with a health report card on fall risks affects their follow through with prevention strategies.

## Contribution

The study evaluates the effectiveness of personalized fall risk report cards and participant satisfaction in a community-dwelling older adult population.

## Key findings

- Participants were most likely to follow through with annual eye exams and medication reviews.
- Older adults who fell were more likely to receive recommendations for fall prevention classes and medication reviews.
- Most participants were satisfied with the report card but few shared it with their doctor.

## Abstract

Increasing older adults’ awareness of their personal fall risk factors may increase their engagement in fall prevention. The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of and participant satisfaction with a comprehensive occupational therapy fall risk screening and recommendations for evidence-based fall prevention strategies based on personalized fall risk results for community-dwelling older adults.

Cognitively normal participants (Clinical Dementia Rating = 0) were recruited from an ongoing longitudinal study of memory and aging. Participants completed 2 annual in-home visits, fall risk questionnaires, and 12 months of fall monitoring between visits. Participants received a health report card with their fall risks and tailored recommendations in 6 domains. Participants completed follow-up questions at their next annual in-home visit about the fall risk recommendations and their satisfaction with receiving their fall risk results.

Two hundred five participants completed 2 annual visits and 12 months of fall monitoring. Of the 6 domains of recommendations provided, participants were most likely to follow through with getting an annual eye exam and reviewing their medications with their doctor or pharmacist. Older adults who fell were significantly more likely to receive recommendations for finding fall prevention classes (p = 0.01) and having a doctor or pharmacist review their medications (p = 0.004). The majority of participants were satisfied receiving their fall risk results (92%) and believed it to be beneficial (90%), though few participants shared their results with their doctor (20%).

An occupational therapy fall risk screening and tailored recommendations were not sufficient to encourage follow through with fall risk recommendations. Older adults may benefit from additional support and encouragement to reduce their fall risk. Additional research is needed to examine awareness of fall risks and follow through with fall risk recommendations among community-dwelling older adults.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12877-024-04686-y.