Rani Iqra, Zaheer Sidra, Nasim Sumaira, Shah Nadia, Hydrie Muhammad Zafar Iqbal
School of Public Health, Dow University of Health Sciences, OJHA Campus, SUPARCO road, Gulzar e Hijri, Karachi, Pakistan.
BMC Public Health. 2025 Mar 3;25(1):850. doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-22016-8.
Safety is one of the top priorities in caring for elderly people because they gradually lose their functional ability with age and are more vulnerable to injuries. Therefore, ensuring safety needs in one's own residential settings is crucial; however, public awareness of home hazards and associated risks of falls is limited. The current study assessed the hazards and associated risks of falling in various residential settings across Karachi, Pakistan.
A total of 166 participants were recruited: 54 from old age homes, 58 from single-unit houses, and 54 from apartments for this cross-sectional study using the convenience sampling method. The study was conducted in 2022 for nine months. Data were gathered using the Home Falls and Accident Screening Tool. During the visit, the researcher asked questions related to demographics, history of falls and then completed HOME FAST by directly observing their home environment and elderly people while they performed their functional tasks at their residence. Independent-Samples Kruskal-Wallis test, chi-square test and cross tabulation were used for statistical analysis.
The median age of the elderly people was 65 years (IQR: 62-70 years). Approximately 22.3% of the participants reported falls in the last 12 months. Among 25 hazards, the most prevalent were lack of bath/shower grab rails, non-slip mats, lack of access to a bedside light, and slippery floor surfaces, where median number of hazards was 5 (IQR: 4-6) indicating a moderate level of risk of hazards. Moreover, a significant difference (P < 0.007) in risk of hazards scores was observed among old age homes, single-unit houses, and apartments. In addition, out of the 25 identified hazards between Fallers vs. Non-Fallers, six hazards; including difficulty in carrying meals, lack of non-slip mats in the bathroom, difficulty during bed transfers, lack of bath/shower grab rails, difficulty during toilet transfers, and reaching difficulties towards kitchen items, were significantly associated with falls.
This study found that identified hazards in residential settings are significantly associated with the risk of falls and can compromise the functional ability, safety, and health of elderly people. Therefore, preventive measures should be taken to reduce hazards and fall incidence to promote safety and independence in daily activities.
安全是照顾老年人的首要任务之一，因为随着年龄的增长，他们的功能能力逐渐丧失，更容易受伤。因此，确保自身居住环境中的安全需求至关重要；然而，公众对家庭危险及相关跌倒风险的认识有限。本研究评估了巴基斯坦卡拉奇不同居住环境中的危险及相关跌倒风险。
本横断面研究采用便利抽样法，共招募了166名参与者：54名来自养老院，58名来自独栋房屋，54名来自公寓。该研究于2022年进行了九个月。使用家庭跌倒与事故筛查工具收集数据。在访视期间，研究人员询问了与人口统计学、跌倒史相关的问题，然后通过直接观察他们的家庭环境以及老年人在住所进行功能任务时的情况来完成家庭跌倒与事故筛查工具评估。采用独立样本Kruskal-Wallis检验、卡方检验和交叉表进行统计分析。
老年人的中位年龄为65岁（四分位间距：62 - 70岁）。约22.3%的参与者报告在过去12个月中跌倒过。在25种危险中，最常见的是浴室/淋浴间缺少扶手、防滑垫、无法使用床头灯以及地面湿滑，危险的中位数为5（四分位间距：4 - 6），表明危险风险处于中等水平。此外，在养老院、独栋房屋和公寓之间观察到危险风险评分存在显著差异（P < 0.007）。此外，在已识别的25种跌倒者与未跌倒者之间的危险中，六种危险，包括端饭菜困难、浴室缺少防滑垫、床上转移困难、浴室/淋浴间缺少扶手、马桶转移困难以及够取厨房物品困难，与跌倒显著相关。
本研究发现，居住环境中已识别的危险与跌倒风险显著相关，并可能损害老年人的功能能力、安全和健康。因此，应采取预防措施以减少危险和跌倒发生率，促进日常活动中的安全和独立性。
