Falls Prevention Service (Oxfordshire)

The risk of falling increases with age, although not all people fall when they get older. Someone who has already had a fall is more likely to fall again in the future. Falling and the fear of falling can make older people lose confidence in going about their day to day activities, and may affect their independence. Although most falls don’t result in serious injury, some cause broken bones, which may be difficult to recover from.

What we do

The Falls Service (Oxford Health NHSFT) work according to the NICE guidance CG161, to offer a one off multifactorial assessment to formulate a personalised risk management plan for falls reduction and refer on for longer term management as necessary.

The assessment is carried out by a specialist healthcare professional either in a clinic or in a persons own home. We welcome a person being accompanied for the assessment.

The assessment can take up to 90 minutes and may include:

Discuss any falls experienced, circumstances around the falls to identify potential reasons for falling
Discuss and assess walking, balance, mobility and muscle weakness
Discuss eyesight
Review medications taken and past medical history
It will include lying and standing blood pressure checks
Explore the risk of fractures and osteoporosis
Look at the home environment (home visit only) to identify additional falls risks such as uneven floors, steps, rugs
Blood tests (if not taken recently)
Make recommendations to GP for medical management

Inclusion Criteria

Registered with an Oxfordshire GP
Over 65 years old
Has fallen at least twice in the past year, and one of these must have been in the last 6 months
Able to walk

Our service

We aim to see all patients referred to the service within eight weeks, however our waiting time can vary based on fluctuating demand. Once the referral has been triaged it will be added to the waiting list. Contact is made by telephone nearer the time for appointment booking to maximise attendance. If the situation changes before contact is made, or a person is worried they may have been missed, please call Single Point of Access on 01865 903 750.

Patients can be referred by their GP or any other health care professional. All healthcare professionals can complete the referral form and we will offer a multifactorial falls assessment to those who meet our criteria.

We can also be contacted by telephone or email for advice and aim to respond within 24 hours.

We do accept self-referrals for those over the age of 65 years.

Those under the age of 65 need to discuss their falls with their GP to see whether a more comprehensive assessment with a consultant would be appropriate.

Our operating hours are Monday to Friday 8am to 4pm.

Clinics are held at the outpatient departments of: