The 11th Biennial Australian and New Zealand Falls Prevention Conference (ANZFPC 2025) brought together over 400 delegates in Sydney from November 23–25 under the theme “Bridging the Gap: Research to Implementation.”
This theme highlighted the need to translate robust research into practical, community-based solutions that reduce falls among older adults. The conference featured leading voices from Australia and around the world, showcasing the latest research, program implementation, training, and policy and planning innovations in falls prevention in Australia, New Zealand, and internationally.
Kathryn Sibley set the tone with a thought‑provoking keynote on how we move beyond strategy design to effective implementation and evaluation- ensuring falls prevention programs deliver real impact. We then heard fantastic insights from Professor Rebecca Ivers, drawing on her work on the Ironbark Fall Prevention Program in NSW and in China, and from Professor Catherine Said, who shared valuable lessons from implementing programs in CALD communities. Both reinforced the importance of tailoring approaches to context and culture.
Despite strong evidence for effective interventions, uptake in real-world settings remains limited. ANZFPC 2025 reinforced that falls prevention is not just about generating evidence, it’s about embedding that evidence into communities, health services, and policy frameworks. Collaboration between researchers, clinicians, and community leaders is key to making falls prevention accessible and impactful.
The Falls Prevention Alliance Australia is calling for coordinated action to move from inevitable to preventable through:
- a strong national awareness campaign and trusted information hub
- a national strategy and plan for prevention
- greater investment in services that support older Australians.