Posters

Introduction Immedicare, a digitally-enabled, round-the-clock NHS clinical service provides remote support to care homes nationwide, with approximately a quarter of clinical consultations pertaining to falls.Falls in older people are often multifactorial, with medication being a significant modifiable risk factor. In July 2024, Immedicare’s pharmacy team launched a targeted, remote falls medication review service (FMRS) to support residents who had fallen and were prescribed at least one medicine identified as contributing to falls, according to the STOPPFall tool (Seppala et al, A&A, 2021)

Introduction Falls are a leading cause of Emergency Department (ED) attendance among older adults and are associated with recurrent visits and high healthcare costs. From January 2023 to December 2024, our ED at Tan Tock Seng Hospital received 3,632 patients aged ≥65 years with falls or falls-related injuries, with an estimated annual cost of SGD 20 million. Despite guideline recommendations for early identification and multifactorial intervention, ED implementation remains inconsistent with frequent re-attendance. Methods FIRST-FALL, implemented in July 2024, is a quality improvement

Introduction: Macclesfield Hospital has a busy trauma ward where the orthogeriatrics team primarily manages patients admitted with fractured neck of femur. We identified inconsistent communication of bone health management plans to community and rheumatology teams at discharge, particularly regarding zoledronic acid infusion dates and follow-up arrangements which posed a risk to continuity of care. A baseline audit reviewed three months of discharge summaries for patients aged over 65 admitted with fractured neck of femur, assessing documentation of FRAX score, vitamin D status, zoledronic

INTRODUCTION Falls represent a significant problem faced by older people, with around a third of people aged 65 and over, and half of those over 80 falling at least once a year. Falls can lead to serious injury, loss of independence, and significant emotional distress. The financial cost to the NHS is estimated as £2.3 billion annually, making fall prevention a crucial public health issue. National guidance (NICE, 2025) recommends Interventions such as fall’s prevention programmes should be offered targeting balance, co-ordination, strength and power. The planned community therapy team

Introduction: Falls are a prevalent issue impacting older people in care homes. Injuries can occur after a fall like fractures and there are many tools in use to manage patients who fall. However, few that focus on care home residents. Action Falls is a checklist that aids in diagnosing and highlighting risk of falls while providing healthcare professionals direct actions to take for prevention. Method: Interviews were conducted over 4 weeks via Microsoft Teams. 3 doctors from each of the specialties Orthopaedics, General Practice, Geriatrics and 4 Psychiatrists were participants to a total 13

Introduction Falls in older adults are a leading cause of injury, hospitalisation and loss of independence, with sarcopenia a major modifiable risk reduction factor. Acute illness and hospitalisation accelerate muscle loss, further increasing risk of falls. Adequate protein intake and resistance exercise are central to maintaining muscle mass and function. This systematic review examined how protein type, dose and timing affect muscle mass, strength and function in hospitalised or recently discharged older adults. Methods A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials

BACKGROUND Major trauma is conventionally associated with high-energy mechanisms such as road traffic collisions or falls from height. However, ground-level falls (GLFs) , defined as unintentional descents to the ground from standing height or below , are an increasingly recognised cause of serious injury and death in older adults.[1,2] Despite appearing to involve low-energy forces, GLFs frequently result in devastating injuries in elderly patients, driven by age-related physiological changes including osteoporosis, frailty, and anticoagulant use.[3,5] With the UK's older population growing

BACKGROUND Early dementia diagnosis brings significant benefits - enabling patients and families to plan ahead, access support services, begin appropriate disease management, and potentially participate in clinical trials.[1] In the UK, the majority of patients with cognitive concerns first present to their general practitioner (GP). Despite national efforts to improve early detection, NHS England data from 2024 indicate that only around 65% of people aged 65 and over estimated to have dementia had a formally recorded diagnosis,[2] suggesting a persistent diagnostic gap. Timely diagnosis is

Introduction: Many people living with dementia have one or more physical health conditions. For example, they may have heart problems, cancer, diabetes or vision difficulties. These conditions are likely to require attendance at hospital appointments, which can be difficult for people with dementia and those who support them. Aims: To co-design and test a toolkit to help staff improve experiences of hospital outpatient appointments for people living with dementia and their families. Methods: We undertook an ethnographic study in five general hospital outpatient departments. Interviews

Background: Rib fractures in older adults are a marker of physiological vulnerability and are associated with complications that can extend well beyond the inpatient stay. While advanced thoracic analgesia and regional techniques are widely used to reduce pain, splinting, and respiratory deterioration, the relationship between these interventions and post-discharge outcomes is less clearly described. We evaluated 30-day post-discharge mortality in patients aged ≥65 admitted with rib fractures, comparing those who received advanced thoracic analgesia/regional intervention versus those who did

Abstract Content - Background: Tandem stance is a key measure of static balance, yet existing tests often lack standardization, rely on ordinal scoring, and fail to account for upper-limb support, reducing accuracy and sensitivity. The SAS Mat was developed to address these limitations. The Mat can be used as the SAS Measure of tandem balance, and as a balance training tool. This study evaluated its test–retest reliability, convergent validity, acceptability, and feasibility in healthy older adults. Methods: A convenience sample of 44 community-dwelling adults aged ≥65 years, with independent

Case study of an older person with traumatic brain injury: from Greece to Glasgow, complicated by infection control protocols Introduction: The average age of major trauma (MT) patients in Scotland is now 70 years, reflecting a rising trend, with falls from standing the most common mechanism of injury (STAG Report, 2024). Older adults frequently present added complexity due to frailty and comorbidities. This case describes an older adult who sustained a traumatic brain injury abroad and, following repatriation under strict infection‑control precautions, received complex in‑reach MT

Introduction Well-being is increasingly recognised as a core outcome in dementia care; however, existing measures largely focus on hedonic aspects such as mood or comfort. Meaning-based (eudaimonic) well-being, encompassing purpose, autonomy and engagement, remains poorly defined and difficult to assess in people with dementia, particularly due to cognitive impairment and limitations in self-report. This study describes the development and validation of the Well-being in Dementia Inventory (WiDI), a novel proxy-rated measure designed to capture deeper dimensions of well-being in this

Background: Long-term adherence to exercise and digital health interventions is critical but remains a major challenge, particularly among older people. While balance exercise is effective in preventing falls, little is known about how older people engage with such programs over time, and what drives sustained adherence. Methods: We analysed adherence data from 511 community-living older people who participated in a home-based digital balance exercise program for 52 weeks. Participants were prescribed two hours of exercise per week, with progressive weekly targets and adherence automatically

Introduction The World Falls Guidelines introduced an algorithm for clinical practitioners to assess risk of falls in older adults. Digital tools can provide a way for people to self-assess, but for such tools to be successful they need to be co-designed with the people who are likely to use them. This project involved the co-design of a digital prototype to self-assess falls risk and be directed towards appropriate local support within one NHS board in Scotland, UK. Method Our overall approach was qualitative, participatory research. Participants were recruited through local third sector

Introduction Older adults form an increasing proportion of trauma admissions, with low-level falls accounting for most injuries. Ageing is associated with reduced physiological reserve, multimorbidity, and greater vulnerability, leading to higher mortality even after low-energy trauma. As geriatric trauma increases, there is increasing emphasis on frailty assessment, prognostication, and advance care planning to support appropriate, patient-centred decisions. This study aimed to identify which injury patterns contribute to increased mortality in the local geriatric trauma population and

Introduction Significant injuries are often missed in patients over 65. This may reflect the perception that low-energy mechanisms are unlikely to cause injury, distracting injuries, communication barriers, or a combination of factors. Delayed fracture diagnosis adversely impacts patient outcomes. A silver trauma screening tool was developed in line with new trust guidance. It recommends that all patients aged over 65 with a Rockwood Clinical Frailty Scale score >5 presenting following a fall undergo trauma screening on admission. The tool consists of shake (cervical spine fractures), rattle

Aim: Optimising the management of older patients admitted with intracranial haemorrhage (ICH) to a District General Hospital. Methodology: This retrospective quality improvement project included patients >65 years old admitted with ICH under the general surgical team over a six-month period (01/01/2025-01/07/2025). Data was collected from the electronic health record (Cerner) and outcomes were analysed. Data will be presented as median (range) unless stated otherwise. Statistical analysis conducted on GraphPad Prism. Results: 62 patients were included, aged 84 (65-99) years. Thirty-three

Introduction: Optimising the management of older patients with rib fractures at a District General Hospital. Method: This retrospective quality improvement project included all patients >65 years old admitted with rib fractures over a six-month period (01/01/2025–01/07/2025). Data was collected from the electronic health record (Cerner). Data will be presented as median (range). Statistical analysis conducted on GraphPad Prism. Results: 81 patients were included, aged 82 (65-100) years. Fifty patients (61%) had a clinical frailty score (CFS) The average battle score was 23, with twenty-seven

Background: Geriatric trauma admissions continue to rise, yet optimal care pathways for this population remain poorly defined. Although trauma centre care improves outcomes in the general trauma population and palliative care is known to support patients with complex needs, their combined value in geriatric trauma remains unclear. At The Hillingdon Hospitals (THH), we observed that older trauma patients frequently lacked timely recognition of dying, received delayed or absent ceilings of care, and often underwent prolonged active treatment despite frailty, comorbidities, or prior care