Deaths of young people living in residential aged care: a national population-based descriptive epidemiological analysis of cases notified to Australian coroners.

More is required to prevent external cause deaths in young residential care facility residents.IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONOne in seven (14.1%) deaths of people aged 20-64 years in residential aged care facilities are premature and potentially avoidable. The more common external causes of death include suicide, choking and falls.The prevalence and causes of preventable deaths in this study provide a basis for prompting and developing more specific prevention policies and practices to reduce harm for young people in residential aged care. Specifically, addressing loneliness would improve social inclusion, mental health and suicide risk. Better management of progressive neurological conditions with multidisciplinary team and re-ablement programs would reduce risk of choking and falls.Improving outcomes for young people in residential aged care requires a co-ordinated, multisector approach comprising relevant government departments, aged care providers, researchers and clinicians.Effective planning requires more information about the cause and nature of deaths, and due to the small event counts, this would ideally involve an international collaboration.