A new national framework to prevent and manage frailty in older Australians has been developed with practical recommendations to help guide best practice.
The framework, released in May, consists of 19 consensus statements to guide frailty prevention and management, and enhance quality of life for adults over 65.
The Australian Consensus Statements are recommendations designed in consultation with healthcare professionals, older adults with lived experience of frailty, and caregivers across the country.
The framework, led by the University of Queensland in a national project, has been endorsed by 77 healthcare experts and six consumers with lived experience. It is an Australian first for preventing and managing frailty, and fills an important gap, said Dr Sakshi Chopra of UQ’s Frazer Institute.
“Our aim is to reduce long-term complications, take pressure off the health system and offer practical recommendations to support healthcare professionals in delivering consistent and proactive care.
“By raising awareness and providing guidance to healthcare practices, we hope the framework will empower healthcare professionals and the public to recognise early signs and take action.
“We want to ensure people living with severe frailty continue to be valued and receive appropriate, person-centred care.”
The framework was commissioned by the Queensland Health Reform Office in partnership with the Australian Frailty Network.
Six key pillars
Developed and endorsed by 77 healthcare experts and six consumers with lived experience, the framework focusses on six key pillars – health promotion and screening, nutrition, exercise, social activities, medicine optimisation, and management of severe frailty.
Frailty is defined as a complex clinical syndrome characterised by a decline in a person’s cognitive and physical function and a reduced ability to recover from stresses such as illnesses or injuries.
While many people remain healthy as they age, more than 20% of Australians aged over 65 are estimated to be affected by frailty – which can lead to falls, hospitalisation, worsening mobility and death.
“In order to optimise the health and quality of life of older people, it is important for frailty to be prevented and, if it does occur, for it to be managed appropriately,” said geriatrician and director of the Australian Frailty Network Professor Ruth Hubbard said.
“Evidence supports the effectiveness of multicomponent interventions, and our 19 consensus statements are guided by the six pillars to improve health outcomes for adults across the spectrum of health – from robust to severely frail.”
The framework outlines practical recommendations for clinicians, such as raising awareness of frailty, personalised counselling on health behaviours, supporting adequate protein intake, structured exercise, meaningful social engagement and tailored care plans.
“We have further categorised the pillars to support the management of mild, moderate and severe frailty – something that has not been attempted before,’’ said Professor Hubbard.
“We want everyone to take a lifelong approach to frailty prevention, and these pillars can be applied to people of all ages.’’
The research is published in the Medical Journal of Australia.
For more information and resources on the management of frailty, visit the Australian Frailty Network website here
