Home environmental risk factors for falls in elderly in Wat Chan Sub-District, Mueang Phitsanulok District, Phitsanulok Province
Keywords:
Falls, Elderly, Home environmentsAbstract
The purposes of this study were to investigate the prevalence of falls inside the home and the surrounding areas, to survey the home-fall hazardous environments, and to study the relationship between home environmental risk factors for falls and falls among the elderly in Wat Chan Sub-District, Mueang Phitsanulok District, Phitsanulok Province. A total of 104 participants was recruited for this study. The participants were interviewed using home-fall questionnaires and self-completed the Thai Home Fall Hazard Assessment Tool (Thai-HFHAT). The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient test to examine the relationship between falls and environmental risk factors. A statistical significance level of 0.05 was determined.
The results showed that within the past year, the elderly participants had a history of falling in the house and the surrounding areas (20.2%), with the highest number of falls occurring in the surrounding areas (67.9%). The most common places where falls occurred were at the front of the home, during the period of 3.00-5.59 pm, tripping was often on different levels of flooring or stairs. Most of the participants had uneven or non-slip mats/rugs (84.6%). The correlation study found that home environmental risk factors were statistically significantly associated with falls inside the home (p-value = 0.012, r = 0.246). The suggestion is that further study should be conducted to explore other risk factors for falls that interact with environmental risk factors, such as biological and behavioral risk factors.
References
Berdie, D. R., Anderson J. F., & Niebuhr MA. (1986). Questionnaires: Design and use. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press
Department of Disease Control, Ministry of Public Health. (2021, November 22). Number and death rate from falls among people aged 60 years and over per 100,000 population Classified by province during 2017-2021. Retrieved November 12, 2022 from https://ddc.moph.go.th/dip/news.php?news=21859&deptcode=dip (in Thai)
Department of Medical Services, Ministry of Public Health. (2015).Older adults’ screeningassessment manual. 2nd ed. Bangkok: The War Veterans Organization of Thailand Press. (in Thai)
Dittasung, A., Neelapaichit, N., & Sreeprasarn, P. (2015). Incidence and factors related to falls among patients after hospital discharge. Journal of Public Health Nursing, 29(3), 78-89. (in Thai)
Fall Prevention, Department of Disease Control, Ministry of Public Health. (2021, November 8). Falls in elderly. Retrieved November 12, 2022 from https://ddc.moph.go.th/uploads/files/2158820211111023059.pdf (in Thai)
Hadjistavropoulos, T., Delbaere, K., & Fitzgerald, T. D. (2010). Reconceptualizing the role of fear of falling and balance confidence in fall risk. Journal of Aging and Health, 23(1), 3-23.
Iamtrakul, P., Chayphong, S., Jomnonkwao, S., & Ratanavaraha, V. (2021). The association of falls risk in older adults and their living environment: A case study of rural area, Thailand. Sustainability, 13(24), 13756.
Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Ministry of Public Health. (2019). Clinical practice guideline for falls prevention and assessment in older adults. Nonthaburi: Sinthavee Printing. Retrieved from http://agingthai.dms.go.th/agingthai/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/book_9.pdf (in Thai)
Kumkwan, Y., Khumngeon, A., Wannalai, U., & Khatta, N. (2018). Home-based fall prevention guideline in Thai contexts for elderly people. Nursing Journal of the Ministry of Public Health, 28(3), 10-22. (in Thai)
Lektip, C., Lapmanee, S., Rattananupong, T., Lohsoonthorn, V., Vorayingyong, A., Woratanarat, T., Sirisuk, K. O., Suttanon, P., Petsirasan, R., Kitidumrongsuk, P., & Jiamjarasrangsi, W. (2020). Predictive validity of three home fall hazard assessment tools for older adults in Thailand. PLOS ONE, 15(12), e0244729.
Lenghee, A., & Boonma, P. (2020). The elderly’s environment in residence at risk of falls: A case study of Maeka sub-district, Muang District, Phayao. Built Environment Inquiry Journal – BEI, 19(3), 43-60. (in Thai)
Lord, S. R., Menz, H. B., & Sherrington, C. (2006). Home environment risk factors for falls in older people and the efficacy of home modifications. Age and Ageing, 35(suppl_2), ii55–ii59.
National Statistical Office of Thailand, Ministry of Digital Economy and Society. (2021). Demographic statistics, population and housing census. Retrieved Aprill 2, 2022 fromhttp://statbbi.nso.go.th/staticreport/page/sector/th/01.aspx (in Thai)
Sorysang, L., Khompraya, J., & Natetanasombut, K. (2014). Study of fall prevention guideline in older adult living in Mitraphappatana Community. Journal of The Royal Thai Army Nurses, 15(1), 122-129. (in Thai)
Srisa-ard, B. (2017). Basic research (10th ed.). Bangkok: Suweeriyasan. (in Thai)
Strategy and Planning Division, Ministry of Public Health. (2022). Public Health Statistics A. D. 2021. Retrieved from https://spd. moph.go.th/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Hstatistic64.pdf (in Thai)
Statistical Forecasting Division, National Statistical Office of Thailand. (2022). The 2021 survey of the older persons in Thailand. Retrieved from https://www.dop.go.th/download/knowledge/th1687612748-2406_0.pdf (in Thai)
Tinetti, M. E., & Kumar, C. (2010). The patient who falls. JAMA, 303(3), 258.
Williams P. (2020). Basic geriatric nursing (7th ed). Missouri: Elsevier.
Wongsawang, N., Jeenkhowkhum, D., Boonsiri, C., Melarplont, S., Somboonsit, J., Khamthana, P. et al. (2017). Home environmental risks for falls and indecent of falls in older adults. Veridian E-Journal, Silpakorn University (Humanities, Social Sciences and arts), 10(3), 2492-2506. (in Thai)
Worapanwisit, T., Prabpai, S., & Rosenberg, E. (2018). Correlates of falls among communitydwelling elderly in Thailand. Journal of Aging Research. 2018. 1-10.
World Health Organization (WHO). (2008, March 17). WHO global report on falls prevention in older age. Retrieved February 10, 2022 from https://extranet.who.int/agefriendlyworld/wpcontent/uploads/2014/06/WHo-Globalreport-on-falls-prevention-in-older-age.pdf
World Health Organization (WHO). (2021, April 26). Falls. Retrieved February 10, 2022 from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/falls
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Journal of Public Health and Health Sciences Research
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
The published article is copyrighted by the Journal of Public Health and Health Sciences Research.
The statements that appear in each article in this academic and research journal are the personal opinions of each author and are not related to Naresuan University and other faculty members in the university. Responsibilities regarding each article are the responsibility of each author.
