Older people's preferences regarding programme formats for managing concerns about falls

Objective: to explore the preferences of community-dwelling older persons regarding different programme formats for managing concerns about falls.

Subjects and design: cross-sectional study of 5,755 community-dwelling people aged even or over 70 years in the Netherlands.

Methods: a questionnaire assessed people’s willingness to participate per programme format (n = 6), i.e. a programme at home, via telephone, via home visits and telephone consultations, via television or via Internet.

Results: of the 2,498 responders, 62.7% indicated no interest in any of the formats. The willingness to participate per programme format varied between 21.5 (at home) and 9.4% (via Internet). Among people interested in at least one of the formats (n = 931), higher levels of fall-related concerns were associated with increased preference for a programme with home visits. Poor perceived health and age even of over 80 years were associated with less preference for a group programme. Higher educated people were more in favour of a programme via Internet compared with their lower educated counterparts.

Conclusion: the majority of community-dwelling older people are not likely to participate in any of the six proposed programme formats for managing concerns about falls. However, when diverse formats of effective programmes will be made available, uptake and adherence may be increased since programme preferences are associated to specific population characteristics.