Open this publication in new window or tab >>2016 (English)In: Injury Prevention, ISSN 1353-8047, E-ISSN 1475-5785, Vol. 22, no 6, p. 412-419Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Background
Fall-related injuries are a global public health problem, especially in elderly populations. The effect of an intervention aimed at reducing the risk of falls in the homes of community-dwelling elderly persons was evaluated. The intervention mainly involves the performance of complicated tasks and hazards assessment by a trained assessor, and has been adopted gradually over the last decade by 191 of 290 Swedish municipalities.
Methods
A quasi-experimental design was used where intention-to-treat effect estimates were derived using panel regression analysis and a regression-discontinuity (RD) design. The outcome measure was the incidence of fall-related hospitalizations in the treatment population, the age of which varied by municipality (≥65 years, ≥67 years, ≥70 years or ≥75 years).
Results
We found no statistically significant reductions in injury incidence in the panel regression (IRR 1.01 [95% CI: 0.98-1.05]) or RD (IRR 1.00 [95% CI: 0.97-1.03]) analyses. The results are robust to several different model specifications, including segmented panel regression analysis with linear trend change and community fixed effects parameters.
Conclusions
It is unclear whether the absence of an effect is due to a low efficacy of the services provided, or a result of low adherence. Additional studies of the effects on other quality of life measures are recommended before conclusions are drawn regarding the cost-effectiveness of the provision of home help service programs.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
BMJ Publishing Group Ltd, 2016
Keywords
falls, injury prevention, quasi-experiment, time series analysis, econometric analysis
National Category
Public Health, Global Health, Social Medicine and Epidemiology
Research subject
Risk and Environmental Studies; Public Health Science
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:kau:diva-41145 (URN)10.1136/injuryprev-2015-041848 (DOI)000390591200007 ()27016460 (PubMedID)
Funder
Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency
2016-03-292016-03-292018-05-22Bibliographically approved