Providing a broad and varied health and wellbeing service that directly meets the needs of our local communities is a huge part of what we do at Brimham's Active.
Falls can happen to anyone but are a common issue for older members of our population, with a third of all over 65’s falling each year, increasing to half of those aged 80 and over.
With over 220 people on an NHS waiting list in our district for fall risk assessments, we teamed up with colleagues at the NHS to provide these services directly in the community.
Health and Wellbeing Development Manager at Brimham’s Active, Ian Salvin, said: ‘We have a really beneficial partnership with the NHS, I regularly attend a steering group for falls prevention, so we know this is a key risk in our community.’
Working in partnership with the Falls team at Harrogate District Foundation Trust, we saw an opportunity to pilot a falls workshop on a much bigger scale utilising one of our Community Wellbeing Hubs, this enabled us to positively impact on the waiting lists at the hospital, in an accessible venue with parking facilities and the opportunity to have a cup of tea. Normally these assessments are delivered on a 1-1 basis which is incredibly time-consuming, with approximately 8 people assessed per week. Our workshop welcomed 59 people, who each benefitted from the expertise of both the NHS and Brimham’s Active team.’
Attendance from a Physiotherapist, two Occupational Therapists and a Rehabilitation Specialist focused on different tests to examine the risk of falls. Further complimented by a team of exercise professionals from Brimham’s Active conducting timed up-and-go assessments. helping to identify risk factors for falls.
Notably, we were able to assess and support:
- 20 medication reviews, with 50% of people referred to have a full review with their GP
- 43 blood pressure checks, identifying 12 people at risk of postural hypertension, eight of which were referred to the hospital
- checking and adjusting walking aids that were not set up correctly and replacing worn rubber ferrules
We are pleased to have helped so many people reduce their risk of falling and have had six people take up our Falls Prevention classes that run at Knaresborough and Jennyfield Styan Wellbeing Hubs. Due to the success of the pilot, we’re looking to host this event every three months to help support the NHS in reducing waiting lists for people to have fall risk assessments, and support people in our community.
If you are interested in our Falls Prevention classes or would like to attend our next event, call 01423 556106.