Teaching seniors to master the art of falling safely
· Medical Xpressedited by Swati Mestri, reviewed by Andrew Zinin
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Judo and elder care may seem like an unlikely matchup, but allied health professionals are learning how to help older Australians fall more safely by using techniques adapted from the martial art.
Adelaide University researchers have been involved in developing a targeted instructor program to train allied health professionals and judo coaches so they can teach seniors safe falling skills.
"Falls are a leading cause of injury and loss of independence among older adults, but there's strong evidence to suggest that judo-based safe falling programs can help minimize harm by reducing fear and improving balance, mobility, strength and safe falling skills," said Dr. Agathe Daria Jadczak, an exercise scientist and researcher from Adelaide University's School of Medicine.
"In this study, we tested a specially developed instructor program designed to train allied health professionals with no judo experience and judo coaches who hadn't worked with seniors before, with the aim of helping them to deliver safe falling training to older Australians.
"We found that instructors' knowledge, their perceived competence in teaching safe falling to older adults and their own safe falling skills improved significantly following the training.
"These findings support our push to have this instructor program rolled out broadly across community and clinical settings."
The paper is published in the Australasian Journal on Ageing.
About 16 allied health professionals from the elder care sector and judo coaches participated in the instructor training. It incorporated safe falling techniques from the evidence-based Dynamic Balance for Life (DBfL) Safe Falling program developed by Adelaide University researchers and the Adelaide University Judo Club.
During the two-day workshop and eight practical sessions, instructors learned about the physics of falling, how to exercise safely with older adults and how to teach judo-based safe falling techniques for various fall scenarios, including modified backward, forward and sideways falls. Their teaching abilities were then assessed by researchers.
"After just two days, participants demonstrated an 89% increase in their own safe falling skills and a 77% increase in their perceived competence in teaching those techniques to older adults," said Jadczak.
"As evidence for judo-based safe falling interventions continues to grow, our findings suggest it is feasible to train more professionals to deliver safe falling training to older adults, potentially complementing existing fall prevention strategies."
Meagan Trollope is a physical therapist at Resthaven Northern Community Services and has incorporated some of the judo-based safe falling techniques from the instructor training into her weekly falls and balance classes.
"The instructor training gave me the confidence to safely teach these modified judo-based safe falling skills to older adults in a small group environment," Trollope said.
"I've now incorporated some of the safe falling techniques into my weekly gym programs for elderly clients between the ages of 75 and 85, who have experienced falls and need to work on their muscle strength and balance skills."
About one in four Australians over the age of 65 experience at least one fall every year. Falls are also the main cause of injury-related hospitalizations for people in this age bracket.
More information
Agathe Daria Jadczak et al., Upskilling Allied Health Professionals and Judo Coaches to Teach Safe Falling Skills to Older Adults: A Train‐the‐Trainer Intervention, Australasian Journal on Ageing (2026). DOI: 10.1111/ajag.70221
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Allied healthHealthy agingFitness & Physical activityCommon illnesses & Prevention Provided by University of Adelaide Who's behind this story?
Swati Mestri
Swati Mestri holds a bachelor's degree in Electronics Engineering and has worked as a content editor since 2019. She has experience editing research documents across technology, health care, and materials science, and has a particular interest in technology and space. Full profile →
Andrew Zinin
Master's in physics with research experience. Long-time science news enthusiast. Plays key role in Science X's editorial success. Full profile →
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