Interprofessional Collaboration in Fall Prevention: Insights from a Qualitative Study

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Public Health
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Community fall prevention is crucial for aging populations.
• Interprofessional cooperation is recognized as key to effective fall prevention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore Swiss healthcare providers' experiences with interprofessional cooperation in a community fall prevention pilot project.
• To identify barriers and facilitators to collaboration between 2016 and 2017.

Main Methods:

• Semi-structured interviews were conducted with healthcare providers.
• Perspectives on jointly developed tools, continuous training, and media campaigns were assessed.

Main Results:

• Interprofessional continuous training was a key strength, enhancing fall prevention networks.
• Standardizing collaboration required significant, often unremunerated, effort.
• Providers strongly support interprofessional collaboration on micro and meso levels.

Conclusions:

• Interprofessional collaboration is vital for fall prevention at micro and meso levels.
• Time and financial constraints pose significant implementation challenges.
• Strengthening interprofessional collaboration requires macro-level strategies.