Social network development of the Stay on Your Feet (SOYF) implementation in the Greater Sudbury Region: A case study

Abstract

The aging of the Canadian population is a serious concern. There are calls for innovation, integration, and collaboration among health and social systems to address older adult care needs. The rate of falls among older adults is high and will increase as the older adult population expands and progresses through the later life course. Stay on Your Feet (SOYF), an evidencebased falls prevention initiative, has been implemented in northeastern Ontario. Social Network Analysis (SNA) and semi-structured interviews were used to examine the implementation of SOYF in the Greater Sudbury region. The network was consisted predominantly of informal collaborations among health-related organizations, had low density and high centrality. Furthering community recognition and engagement of older adults were indicated as necessary to achieve sustainability of SOYF. The SOYF implementation network could use more collaboration among health and social organizations.