Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42167943›Full record

ArticleBMJ open2026

Role of allied health professions in falls prevention for community-dwelling older adults: a scoping review.

Amy Lawton, Nicholas Tripodi, Rebecca Wospil, Breanna M Wright, Hylton B Menz, Suzanne Martin, Daniel R Bonanno, Corey Linton, Andisheh Bastani, Andrew Ross and 7 more

Abstract readScoping Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

17 authors.

Amy LawtonSchool of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7999-0873
Nicholas TripodiCollege of Sport, Health and Engineering, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Rebecca WospilFirst Year College, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Breanna M WrightCollege of Sport, Health and Engineering, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Hylton B MenzDiscipline of Podiatry, School of Allied Health, Human Services and Sport, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Suzanne MartinInstitute for Health & Sport (IHES), Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Daniel R BonannoDiscipline of Podiatry, School of Allied Health, Human Services and Sport, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Corey LintonSchool of Allied Health Sciences, Faculty of Health, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.
Andisheh BastaniDepartment of Allied Health, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Andrew RossCollege of Sport, Health and Engineering, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Rees ThomasCollege of Sport, Health and Engineering, Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Daniel CorcoranSchool of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Timothy McNamaraSchool of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Danielle BaxterSchool of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Brett VaughanDepartment of Medical Education, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8623-4558
Rebecca LaneInstitute for Health & Sport (IHES), Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Jack FeehanSchool of Health and Biomedical Sciences, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia jack.feehan@rmit.edu.au.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9627-1299

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveFalls among community-dwelling older adults are prevalent and have serious individual, societal and economic consequences. Allied health professionals provide key falls prevention interventions yet their representation in current clinical practice guidelines is inconsistent. Increased recognition of allied health roles and delivering context-specific guidelines for falls care could help to address workforce gaps and optimise care approaches. This scoping review explored the roles of the allied health professions in falls prevention screening, assessment and intervention for community-dwelling older adults.

designScoping review, using the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology for scoping reviews. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, Cochrane, Web of Science and Allied and Complementary Medicine Database databases. The initial search was completed in November 2023, with a secondary search performed in July 2025. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: Sources were eligible if they identified or described a specific role of at least one allied health professional in falls prevention care for older adults. No restrictions were placed on publication type or date. Study protocols and conference abstracts were excluded, and only English-language sources were included. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: ChatGPT-4o was used for initial data extraction. Authors then cross-checked and updated inaccuracies as required. A numerical descriptive analysis, and a qualitative content analysis were performed to answer the research questions.

resultsThe search identified 442 relevant sources from 34 countries. The roles of 17 allied health professions in falls prevention for community-dwelling older adults were discussed. Screening, assessment and intervention roles were identified spanning medical, physical capacity, environmental, education and behavioural-psychological domains. Profession-specific interventions closely aligned with their primary scope of practice, and notable areas of overlap between professions were highlighted.

conclusionThis review highlights the diverse and overlapping contributions of allied health professionals to falls prevention in community-dwelling older adults. Varying levels of evidence are available across the professions and evidence gaps were highlighted for smaller allied health professions, indicating a need for foundational research to substantiate their roles and facilitate their inclusion in future practice guidelines. TRIAL REGISTRATION DETAILS: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/7SV3F.

Indexed as

Accidental FallsAllied Health PersonnelIndependent LivingProfessional RoleAgedAging in PlaceHumansAgingGERIATRIC MEDICINEHealth Services for the AgedPreventive Health ServicesPrimary Health Care

Identifiers

PMID42167943
PMCPMC13202132

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.