Interprofessional Approach to Falls Risk

The benefits of the interprofessional approach and interdisciplinary education stressed at Salus University was never more apparent than in a recent online seminar on falls risk assessment and intervention, which combined expertise of both the Audiology and Occupational Therapy (OT) departments.

The two-part educational seminar featured on AudiologyOnline showcased Bre Myers, AuD ‘06, PhD ‘17, CH-AP, assistant dean of the Foundations and Assessment of Audiologic Medicine in the University’s Osborne College of Audiology (OCA), and Anna Grasso, OTD, MS, OTR/L, CAPS, ECHM, associate professor and academic fieldwork coordinator for the University’s OT program. In addition, Helena Esmonde, PT, DPT, of Advance Physical and Aquatic Therapy in suburban Philadelphia, added a physical therapy aspect to the presentation.

According to Dr. Myers, about 85 percent of people over the age of 80 exhibit balance dysfunction, which could lead to injury and even death. She added that identifying falls risk isn’t for just one profession and stressed that different professions approach it in different ways.

“Essentially there aren’t enough providers who are skilled at identifying falls risk and addressing it in a good manner. That’s why we decided to come together to talk about this topic,” said Dr. Myers.

Part one of the webinar dealt with identifying those who are at risk for falls or those who have balance problems and how audiologists, OTs and PTs would approach assessment. Part two of the webinar addressed interventions healthcare providers can use to reduce a patient’s risk for falls. Originally intended to be a live session primary for audiologists, the organizers determined it would be beneficial to present the webinar to a wider interprofessional audience. As a result, sessions were recorded and will be able to be viewed by audiology, OT and PT students. 

The webinar’s one advantage was that the professions were able to learn more about each other and how they can best work together to benefit the patient. 

“It really provided an opportunity to discuss amongst colleagues and introduce the other professions to each other,” said Dr. Myers. “We were hoping that by looking at falls risk in a multidisciplinary way would achieve the best outcomes for our patients and clients.”

Grasso said she learned quite a bit about audiology and physical therapy by participating in the webinar.

“As faculty, we need to learn more about our colleagues and what they do. It’s important for us to have a good understanding of the roles and responsibilities the other disciplines have so we can share that with our students,” she said. “And, if we’re practicing, have a better understanding of what we can offer our clients as a multidisciplinary team.”

Both Salus faculty members said they hoped this wasn’t just a one and done event and they planned to build on the presentation. They see the potential to bring more professions, such as optometrists, physician assistants, blindness and low vision specialists, nurses, home health caregivers and pharmacists, into the mix in the future.

“A big part of it is understanding what other disciplines can offer so that we can refer,” said Grasso. “I see real potential for having a community-based program around falls prevention that we could have at Salus. I think this is a topic that very easily lends itself to a community series of events.”

Dr. Myers said she was pleasantly surprised to know that she really didn’t know everything there was to know about OT and PT. "I now know more and I can feel much more confident when I see a patient and can refer them to PT and OT,” she said.