Beattie Bonita Lynn
Falls Free Initiative, National Council on Aging, Washington, District of Columbia.
J Geriatr Phys Ther. 2014 Jan-Mar;37(1):31-4. doi: 10.1519/JPT.0b013e31828835f4.
Given the rapid aging of the population, we can expect the number of older adult falls and fall-related injuries and deaths to increase exponentially unless we make a serious commitment to providing evidence-based, fall risk screening and assessments, and appropriate interventions to those increasingly at risk. National, state, and local partners are coming together to address this growing public health issue through evidence-based interventions that promote collaboration between public health, health care, and aging service providers. Physical therapists are uniquely positioned to make a significant contribution to this effort and to promote older adult participation in programs and services that can augment or supplement the plan of treatment. The purpose of this special interest paper is to describe the efforts of the National Council on Aging's Falls Free Initiative and the role that physical therapists and other rehabilitation professionals can play in community-based programs aimed at reducing risk and occurrence of falls in later life.
鉴于人口的迅速老龄化，我们可以预计，除非我们认真致力于为那些风险日益增加的人群提供基于证据的跌倒风险筛查与评估以及适当的干预措施，否则老年人跌倒以及与跌倒相关的伤害和死亡数量将呈指数级增长。国家、州和地方的合作伙伴正在共同努力，通过基于证据的干预措施来解决这一日益严重的公共卫生问题，这些措施促进了公共卫生、医疗保健和老年服务提供者之间的合作。物理治疗师在这一努力中具有独特的地位，能够做出重大贡献，并促进老年人参与那些可以增强或补充治疗计划的项目和服务。这篇专题论文的目的是描述美国国家老龄问题委员会的“无跌倒倡议”所做的努力，以及物理治疗师和其他康复专业人员在旨在降低晚年跌倒风险和发生率的社区项目中可以发挥的作用。
