Decline in falls and broken hips: A success story in New Zealand

New Zealand is the first country in the world that has managed to reduce the number of in-hospital falls that result in a broken hip.

A paper recently published in the New Zealand Medical Journal by the New Zealand Quality & Safety Commission highlights a sector-wide commitment to preventing harm and in reducing the number of falls resulting in serious harm in New Zealand.

This includes a 40 percent reduction in falls occurring in public hospitals which resulted in a broken hip since December 2014. The number of falls leading to a hip fracture has fallen for six consecutive quarters.

These results are important because hip fracture is the most common serious fall-related injury in those over 80 years old. Only half of those who survive a hip fracture will walk unaided again, and many will not regain their former degree of mobility. Between 10 and 20 percent will be admitted to residential care as a result of the fracture. 27 percent of those over 80 will die within a year of their hip fracture.

The Commission’s Reducing Harm from Falls programme is the first in the world to describe credible reductions on a national scale in the most serious type of harm –fractured hips from falls in hospitals.

When the Commission was established in 2010, voluntary reporting of in-hospital falls accounted for 51 percent of all reported adverse events. The number of falls reported rose by 50 percent each year from 2007–11. However, in 2015–16 the number of falls reported fell to 237, compared to 277 in 2014–15, a 14 percent reduction. This is the first reduction since 2009–10.

The NZMJ article is available to view here