Forty-four patients aged 65 years and over who fell whilst in an acute hospital and 44 patients who did not fall during their hospital stay underwent structured medical examinations to identify factors associated with falling. The control subjects were matched for age (+/- 3 years), sex, patient type, and primary diagnosis. The examination was based on established assessments of posture, balance and gait, the musculoskeletal system, vision, cardiovascular status, and neurological function. Bivariate analyses revealed seven assessment measures that were significantly associated with falls: cognitive impairment, particularly impaired orientation; evidence of previous cerebrovascular accident; incoordination as measured clinically; inability to perform the 'Get-up-and-go' test, especially an inability to turn around after a 5-metre walk, and the use of psycho-active medications. Of these variables, impaired orientation, psycho-active drug use, evidence of stroke, and impaired performance in the 'Get-up-and-go' test were included in a stepwise logistic regression which correctly classified 80% of the patients into faller and non-faller groups. Falling was also related to the number of these identified risk factors. These findings suggest that a simple screening protocol, taking about 5 min to complete, can assist in the identification of patients at risk of falls whilst in hospital.