Falls — are you at risk?

Did you know that the most common risk factor for having a fall, is a previous fall? Most people hesitate to share that they have fallen, however, sharing this information to a trusted person can make a big difference.

A discussion about how the fall happened can have an impact on your risk of future falls. Was it your shoe? An uneven floor? A dizzy spell?

Looking at the environmental factors, along with review of your current medicines and health status, should become a routine event after a fall.

Health and medicines can contribute to falls in many ways.

• If your blood pressure is too low due to your new medicine, this needs to be reviewed.
• If your sleeping tablet is making it hard to get up in the morning, this needs to be reviewed.
• If your pain relief is making you sleepy and affecting your memory, this needs to be reviewed.

If you have a change in health status due to a fall or if you have any concerns about your health or medicines, please speak to your doctor.

You can request that your doctor write a referral for a home medicines review. This home visit with a credentialed pharmacist allows you to discuss your medicines, concerns and health goals. A home medicine review may identify a potentially inappropriate medicine or a health factor that can be managed to reduce your risk of falls.

The objectives of a HMR are to:

• Support safe, effective, and appropriate use of medicines
• Detect and address medicine-related problems that interfere with desired patient outcomes
• Improve the patient’s quality of life and health outcomes using a best practice approach, which involves collaboration between the referrer, GP (if this is not the referrer), pharmacist and the patient (and where appropriate, their carer)
• Facilitate collaborative working relationships between members of the health care team in the best interests of patient health and wellbeing
• Provide medicine information to the patient and other health care providers involved in the patient’s care, to optimise the quality use of medicines.