Impact of a Pharmacy-Led Fall Prevention Program for Institutionalized Older People

To evaluate the impact of pharmacy interventions on recurrence of falls in older people.

Prospective case-crossover study.

LECOM Health Nursing and Rehabilitation (LNR) and Senior Living Center (SLC) and Millcreek Community Hospital older adult behavioral health and inpatient rehabilitation units (IRU).

Twenty and 15 residents of the SLC and LNR, respectively, and 5 and 2 patients of the older adult behavioral health unit and IRU, respectively, experienced a fall during the 8-week study period.

Medication reviews were conducted by a pharmacist assessing for fall risk-increasing drugs (FRIDs). Adverse effects, drug interactions, and nonpharmacologic causes were evaluated, and recommendations were made to reduce future fall risk.

Recommendation acceptance rate, FRID use, and incidence of recurrent falls.

Eighty percent of fall risk-reduction recommendations were accepted and implemented by the medical team. The mean number of potential FRIDs prescribed per participant was reduced from 3.71 to 3.38. There was a 12.4% reduction in recurrent falls after pharmacy intervention (P = 0.0336; odds ratio [95% confidence interval] = 1.783 [1.045-3.112]).

Pharmacist interventions for older people who experience a fall were associated with a high acceptance rate by health care providers, a reduction in FRID use, and decreased rate of recurrent falls.