Doctors urged to consider home conditions in falls risk assessment

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By Olivia Bowthorpe

Poor housing conditions such as inadequate lighting, lack of space and electrical or plumbing problems increase the risk of falls among older people, according to a new English study.

Falls linked to poor housing cost health and social care services roughly £1.2 billion a year, according to researchers led by Javiera Cartagena-Farías, assistant professorial research fellow at the London School of Economics and Political Science.

"It is important for doctors to be aware that the risk of falls is not only determined by individual characteristics (e.g. health status and care needs), but also by people’s living circumstances, including housing quality," Cartagena-Farías told Doctors.net.uk.

She added: "In our research, we found that older people living in homes with electrical or plumbing problems, as well as those with insufficient space, were more likely to experience a fall. Similarly, we found that older people living in homes that were “too dark” had a higher likelihood of experiencing a fall and of subsequently using healthcare services.