NSW Injury Risk Management Research Centre, University of New South Wales.
Aust N Z J Public Health. 2011 Apr;35(2):170-5. doi: 10.1111/j.1753-6405.2010.00656.x. Epub 2011 Jan 13.
To develop a comprehensive estimate of the burden of fall-related injury among older people in New South Wales.
Fall injuries in 2006/07 were estimated using information from several datasets and the literature. Healthcare costs were calculated using Australia-Refined--Diagnostic-Related Group costs for hospital episodes of care and average costs for Emergency Department presentations, ambulance transport and residential aged care (RAC). Ratios of the cost of inpatient care relative to other health services, derived from the literature, were used to estimate the costs associated with these services.
In 2006/07, in NSW, there were almost 143,000 falls, among older people, resulting in injuries requiring medical treatment. The total cost of healthcare associated with these falls was estimated at $558.5 million. Although accounting for only 6% of the NSW population aged 65 years and older, persons in RAC accounted for 15% of the total cost of falls injury and 21% of hospital inpatient costs.
This study demonstrates the extremely high economic cost of falls in older persons and highlights the disproportionate impact of falls in RAC. The study underscores the urgent need for significant investment in fall-injury prevention efforts in both the community and RAC settings.
对新南威尔士州老年人跌倒相关伤害负担进行全面评估。
利用来自多个数据集和文献的信息，对 2006/07 年的跌倒伤害进行了估计。利用澳大利亚精细诊断相关组成本对住院医疗费用进行了计算，并利用急诊科就诊、救护车运输和养老院（RAC）的平均成本对急诊就诊进行了计算。利用文献中得出的住院治疗相对于其他卫生服务的成本比率，对这些服务相关的费用进行了估计。
2006/07 年，新南威尔士州有近 14.3 万老年人因跌倒受伤需要治疗。这些跌倒相关的医疗保健总成本估计为 5.585 亿美元。尽管养老院中的老年人仅占新南威尔士州 65 岁及以上人口的 6%，但他们却占跌倒伤害总成本的 15%和住院病人费用的 21%。
本研究表明老年人跌倒的经济成本极高，并强调了养老院中老年人跌倒的巨大影响。该研究突出表明，需要在社区和养老院环境中大力投资预防跌倒伤害。
