Evaluation of the impact of Fire and Rescue Service interventions in reducing the risk of harm to vulnerable groups of people from winter-related illnesses
PHE November 2016
PHE November 2016
- This report examines the impact of fire and rescue service (FRS) interventions to reduce the risk of winter-related ill health in vulnerable groups of people between October 2015 and March 2016.
- The pilot delivered home visits which focused on a broader range of issues relating to health and wellbeing, aimed to address the health risks of people vulnerable to falls, social isolation, cold homes and flu during the winter months. Brief interventions focused on prevention of falls, cold homes and social isolation as well as signposting to flu immunisation.
- The analysis suggests that to break even, every 1,000 visits would need to prevent 65 A&E attendances or 8.4 emergency admissions or 3 mid to high risk falls.
- The pilot demonstrated some degree of transferability across three different models of delivery within the FRS. However, there is an indication that implementation is more effective on a smaller scale, across a single area, compared to large scale implementation across a metropolitan area, with a diverse population.
- Recommendations relate to preparation time, targeting, data sharing and collection, training, delivery, engagement, governance, content of the home visit, commissioning and longer-term evaluation.
