DEVELOPING A MODEL OF HEALTH PROMOTION AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH FOR PREVENTION FALLS OF THE ELDERLY IN THE COMMUNITY

Abstract

Falls represent a significant public health concern among the older adult population.This research aimed to develop and evaluate a health promotion and environmental health model designed to prevent falls among community-dwelling older adults. This study employed a participatory action research (PAR) approach involving the community. A sample of 365 participants was recruited. Data collection encompassed several key areas: general health status, environmental risk factors for falls, physical performance assessed by the Timed Up and Go Test (TUGT), and fall risk assessed using the Thai Falls Risk Assessment Test (Thai-FRAT). Qualitative data were analyzed using Content Analysis, while quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Paired t-test.

The findings revealed that the fall prevention model developed for community-dwelling older adults was structured into three distinct intervention levels: (1) all at-risk groups, (2) high-risk groups, and (3) very-high-risk groups. The evaluation results post-implementation of the model demonstrated significant improvements. The time taken to complete the TUGT was reduced from 10.13±3.99 seconds to 9.71±4.19 seconds (p-value < 0.001). Furthermore, the prevalence of participants categorized as being at high risk for falls, according to the Thai-FRAT assessment, decreased from 24.4% to 18.4% (p-value < 0.001).

The developed model demonstrated effectiveness in reducing fall risks among community-dwelling older adults. However, continuous refinement and further development are still necessary to address specific environmental health factors within the residences to achieve maximum and sustainable efficacy in fall prevention.