Tackling falls in stroke survivors

A new intervention, led by experts in rehabilitation from the University of Nottingham, will look at how to reduce the number of falls experienced by stroke survivors in their homes.

Many people struggle with balance problems after a stroke. This is because a stroke can change the way a person’s brain controls balance. Balance problems can leave people feeling unsteady or uncoordinated.

The Falls in Stroke Survivors (FISS) study team, led by Professor Pip Logan, lead for the NRC at the University of Nottingham, and Dr Vicky Booth from the UoN School of Medicine, have received £2.2million from the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) to reduce falls, fall risk and concern for falling, when stroke survivors return to their homes.

The team will build on Professor Logan’s previous work using an individually tailored checklist method called Action Falls, to identify and minimise known fall-risks. The method has previously been shown to reduce falls in care homes by 43%. The team will now use the funding to adapt and evaluate Action Falls so stroke survivors can use it in their everyday lives.

The trial will compare the Action Falls for Stroke intervention and usual care, against usual care alone, in stroke survivors as they return to the community after a stroke in 10 NHS Trusts across the UK.

The NHS Trusts have been selected for the high incidence of stroke in their populations, some of which are in areas that have historically had less access to research.

The project is one of the first major studies funded within the University of Nottingham that is associated with the upcoming National Rehabilitation Centre (NRC) and the expanding rehabilitation research programme.

The NRC is due to open in 2025 and aims to transform clinical treatment for patients in the East Midlands and will set a new standard for research and innovation, and education and training in rehabilitation for the whole of the UK. It will be run by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, with research and training being led by the University of Nottingham and Loughborough University.

Our Action Falls intervention has proven to reduce falls in care home residents. In this trial we will adapt it so stroke survivors can use it in their everyday lives. Having it embedded in the National Rehabilitation Centre makes it a truly national project.

Professor Pip Logan

The whole team are so pleased to have been awarded the funding to do this important research.  Stroke survivors are at an increased risk of falls but evidence-based approaches to directly address this within their rehabilitation programmes are limited.  The FISS study is a major step forwards in helping stroke survivors reduce falls.

Dr Vicky Booth

Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) is fundamental within the FISS project and Dr Fred Higton is a co-applicant and a key member of the FISS team.

The PPI input is there to ensure that information intended for the participants is clear and understandable and that jargon and acronyms are avoided throughout the project.

Dr Fred Higton

This project is also supported by the Nottingham Stroke Research Partnership Group, a well-established team of patients, lay members and academics which reviews and advises on current Stroke research.