Professor of Ageing and Health Dawn Skelton shared her expertise at the Cross-Party Group (CPG) on Accident Prevention and Safety Awareness at the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday, November 22.
She was there to outline the importance of the World Falls Guidelines, which she co-authored, and the evidence-base and cost-effectiveness of falls prevention interventions.
Professor Skelton, who co-leads the School of Health and Life Sciences’ Research Centre for Health Ageing Well Research Group, was part of an international expert group behind the landmark publication of the World Guidelines for Falls Prevention.
The CPG, convened by Clare Adamson MSP, also heard from Peter McCrossan, Director for Allied Health Professions at NHS Lanarkshire, Jules Robinson from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, and Robert Thomson from Care and Repair Scotland, about their work in falls prevention. Elizabeth Lumsden, RosPA Scotland, is the Secretary to the CPG and works with Professor Skelton in the 4 Nations Falls Collaborative.
The World Guidelines for Falls Prevention is a global initiative which aims to provide a framework and expert recommendations to healthcare and other professionals working with older adults on how to identify and assess the risk of falls.
They recommend which interventions, alone or in combination, should be offered to older people as part of a person-centred approach to preventing and managing falls.
The World Guidelines for Falls Prevention and Management for Older Adults: A Global Initiative were published in the scientific journal of the British Geriatrics Society.
The guidelines were developed by the World Falls Task Force, involving 96 multidisciplinary experts from 39 countries across five continents, with representation from 36 scientific and academic societies.
Within 24-hours of the World Falls Guidelines being launched on social media, 2.75 million people had viewed them on Twitter.
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