An ambulance service has launched a month-long campaign to raise awareness of falls and frailty.
South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SCAS) receives around 3,000 emergency calls each month from patients who have fallen or are living with frailty.
The campaign aims to highlight the impact of falls and raise awareness of the support available.
Jon Lloyd, specialist practice manager at SCAS, said: "Falls in older adults often result from a combination of intrinsic and extrinsic factors.
"Intrinsic factors include muscle weakness, poor balance, visual impairments and the side effects of certain medications.
"Extrinsic factors encompass environmental hazards, such as poor lighting, slippery floors and unsecured rugs."
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Ambulance services across the UK respond to around 700,000 emergency calls each year for falls involving people aged 65 and over, making up about 10 per cent of all 999 calls.
Falls among older adults cost the NHS more than £2.3bn annually, with most of that cost relating to hip fractures.
The impact of falls extends beyond physical injury, often leading to a loss of independence, reduced quality of life, and increased social isolation due to a fear of falling again.
SCAS has developed specialist falls and frailty services in partnership with organisations across Hampshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire.
The Hampshire falls and frailty care service is delivered in collaboration with Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
The service includes a dedicated frailty vehicle, staffed by a specialist paramedic and frailty clinicians.
This team can be dispatched via 999 or NHS 111 calls, or through GP referrals.
Maddie Jones, falls car lead at Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, said: "The frailty practitioners bring a wealth of frailty expertise from therapy and nursing backgrounds.
"When they can identify why a fall has occurred, they are able to immediately implement preventative and educational strategies to prevent further falls and the likelihood of serious injuries occurring."
The team offers assessments, mobility support, equipment, and follow-up care in the patient’s home.
The campaign will also promote the role of SCAS’ volunteer community first responders, who attend non-injury fall call-outs to reduce pressure on emergency ambulances.
It will share advice on identifying and removing trip hazards, as well as self-care tips from NHS 111 clinicians to help older adults and carers manage health risks at home.
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