Our Falls and Fracture Clinic provides comprehensive assessments of a patient’s risk of falls and fractures.
Our assessments are designed to prevent fall injuries and fractures which affect:
- Older Australians – 1 in 2 women and 1 in 3 men over 60 will have an osteoporotic fracture in Australia
- Repeat fractures – Approximately 50% of people with one fracture due to osteoporosis will have another.
- Hospital admissions – In Australia, a preventable injury-related hospitalisation for osteoporotic fractures will occur every 8 minutes
Assessments
Patients receive a comprehensive assessment, which includes:
Clinical Assessment
- Identification of risk factors for falls and fractures
- Nutritional and mood (depression) assessment
- Medication review
- Clinical assessment by a Geriatrician, a Nurse, and an Exercise Physiologist.
- Biochemistry profile for osteoporosis and nutritional status
Balance and Dizziness Assessment
- Assessment using our Balance Rehabilitation Unit, a state-of-the-art 3D virtual reality tool for the assessment of vestibular function
- Patients identified as suffering from either balance disorders and/or significant dizziness will be scheduled for Balance Rehabilitation for 6 weeks
Gait Assessment
- Assessment using our gait assessment unit (GAITRite). This unit will identify any abnormalities in a patient’s gait and will determine their risk of falling within a year
- A care plan will be developed that includes exercise and physiotherapy from gait abnormalities that increase a patient’s risk of falls
Densitometry (DXA) Assessment
- All patients assessed at the clinic will be assessed for their Bone Densitometry (BMD) and body composition using our DXA machine. Our DXA machines utilise the normative values from the Australian Body Composition Study by Kirk et al (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jcsm.12712) to assist clinicians in identifying body composition disorders such as sarcopenia and obesity.
- If low BMD or low muscle mass is found, appropriate treatment for osteoporosis and sarcopenia will be prescribed.
Results & monitoring
Following your assessment, we will develop a care plan that includes interventions to prevent new or recurrent episode of falls and osteoporotic fractures.
Patients will be regularly reviewed at the clinic to monitor their progress.
Organise a referral
Referrals need to be organised by a General Practitioner (GP) who need to:
- Assess eligibility for the Clinic based on the criteria outlined in the Falls & Fracture Clinic Referral Form.
- Download and complete the Referral Form including relevant consent
- Prepare patient details including the history, relevant pathology results, list of medications and other relevant information
- Send the completed Referral Form and additional documentation to ffclinic@aimss.org.au or via Fax to 8395 8262.
Enquiries
For more information, contact:
Solange Bernardo
Fracture Care and Prevention Co-ordinator
Ph: (03) 8395 8231
solange.bernardo@wh.org.au