The EHSCP Community Falls Prevention and Management Pathway have been developed to be used by a wide range of health and care professionals across the system. The Pathway has been designed to support early identification and management of individuals who are at risk of harm from falls. Using a consistent and structured approach to categorising risk enables equitable access to effective, person-centred support and care.
A message from Hannah Cairns, Chief Allied Health Professional at Edinburgh Health & Social Care Partnership (May 2025)
The first component of the EHSCP Falls Prevention and Management Framework and Toolkit is a model of risk stratification for falls based on a population health approach. This has resulted in the design and development of the EHSCP Screening Tool for Falls Risk Stratification, which can be used by a variety of health and care professionals across the system. This tool enables people to be identified and categorised by risk of harm in a consistent and structured methodology. Following this screening, people are categorised into falls risk levels starting at level 0 (very low risk), level 1 (low risk), level 2 (moderate risk) and level 3 (high risk).
The second, related component is the development of appropriate falls risk level, Falls Care Bundles. The Falls Care Bundles will ensure that people receive a consistent level of support, take preventative action at the earliest point, and our finite resources to those at the greatest risk are targeted. The Falls Care Bundles are cumulative in nature, starting with credible and clinically appropriate signposting at level 0. Falls Care Bundles 1 and 2 are more targeted and include access to strength and balance programmes.
Identification of risk level 3 enables and supports access to a full Multifactorial Falls Assessment (MFA) carried out by a qualified Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist and subsequent targeted interventions.
To successfully implement the new Falls Prevention and Management Pathway, it is vital that a skilled workforce is in place, with access to the right information at the right time.
With that in mind, a supporting knowledge and skills framework was developed with three distinct tiers of expertise. The Knowledge and Skills Framework was designed to guide staff in building the necessary expertise, so the pathway can be delivered safely, effectively, and to the highest standard—within their own scope of practice.
