Effective, sustainable, and transferable physical exercise interventions for fall prevention among older people

Falls among older people are preventable through exercise-based programs. However, scientific evidence must be translated into practice to support professionals who implement such programs.

This study aimed to identify physical exercise interventions for fall prevention and to determine the best practice for implementing them in local community-dwelling older adults.

We used a narrative synthesis method to produce Effective, Sustainable, and Transferable Preventive Interventions. We reviewed guidelines, systematic reviews, and randomized controlled trials (RCT) to find the best evidence supporting physical exercises to prevent falls, followed by discussing the evidence with clinical experts to evaluate the best strategy for implementing them into the local context. These steps resulted in the development of a user manual.

We included two guidelines, one systematic review with a meta-analysis, and one RCT. The developed draft manual includes activities, methods, infrastructural resources, human capital, stakeholders, frequency, and duration of the intervention, information, and educational materials, and implementation models. Our discussion of the intervention with a panel of experts considered resources, barriers, and similar experiences to ensure effectiveness and economic, social, and time sustainability.

The developed manual could be implemented in the local context and adapted to the needs of the population while considering available resources.