National Fall Prevention Awareness Day

Today, September 22cnd, is National Fall Prevention Awareness Day. At Private Home Care, raising awareness about falls and preventing them is a top priority. For the elderly, falling can lead to serious injury and even death. It is the leading cause of ER visits for older adults and the elderly. Unfortunately, falling is not an uncommon occurrence, with 30% of adults over the age of 65 experiencing a serious fall once a year, and 50% for seniors over the age of 80.

Private Home Care provides highly skilled in-home fall risk assessments. Our company President, Mary Demakes R.N. is a trained expert at fall prevention and educates the community about this serious public health issue. We are passionate about enabling elders to live the highest quality of life and allowing them to age safely in place. In doing so, we must raise awareness about fall prevention to protect seniors and support healthy, independent aging at home.

After the age of 65, the natural process of aging dulls the body’s vestibular system, which is responsible for balance and coordinated movement. It happens gradually, so many aging adults do not realize that their balance may not be what it once was. They continue to do activities they have done their whole life that require vestibular support, like carrying a box up the stairs, until a fall happens. There are other factors that contribute to risk of falling, including environmental (example: low lighting), and medications. Some medications cause dizziness or lightheadedness and increase the likelihood of falls. Most seniors have a fear of falling, which consequently may make falling more likely. This is because when we have a fear of something, our body tenses up and may not properly balance itself, leading to a fall. Over 50% of falls result in hip fractures of head trauma, and about 40% of seniors are admitted to nursing homes facilities after a fall.

The good news is that there is much to be done to prevent a fall. If you have a loved one who is at risk for a fall, we would like to offer our expert caregiving services to ensure their health and happiness, as well as an in home assessment. A proven method to prevent falls is with exercise. Building up the body’s strength and balance through exercise and activity helps reduce the chance of falls or extent of injury. Activities like tai-chi, water aerobics, stretching classes, yoga, and walking, mild weight-bearing exercise are all great, low impact ways to strengthen the body. Almost half of seniors who have experienced a fall cannot get up after, and conditioning the body is also helpful for recovery and increases the likelihood that the person will be able to get up.

Tips to prevent falls at home:

-All rooms should be well-lit. (add brighter bulbs, night-lights)

-Clear all pathways from clutter (remove loose rugs, trash, etc.)

-Arrange furniture to ensure all pathways are clear.

-Stairs should be well-lit, clear of objects, have handrails on both sides, have secured rungs, or other slip prevention in place)

On National Fall Prevention Awareness Day, we observe this day by informing everyone about this very serious public health issue. If there are any concerns for potential falls, we encourage you to reach out to Private Home for a fall assessment and an overview of caregiving services to keep your loved ones safe, healthy, and happy while aging independently at home.