National Falls Awareness Day
Falls represent a major concern for older people, both in terms of their physical health and mental wellbeing. The Age Concern and Help the Aged’s National Falls Awareness Day aims to promote useful tips on how to reduce the risk of falling as we age.
Approximately 30 per cent of people over 65 and 50 per cent of over 80s have a fall in the community each year. Fortunately Age Concern’s Personal Alarm System is here to help, providing older people with around-the-clock reassurance, so that they can live safely and independently in their own home. The service can offer peace of mind for both families and the older individual.
Sheila Merrill, home safety manager (England) at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, said: “Older people are particularly vulnerable to falls. Often, a number of factors will come together to cause a fall, such as environmental hazards, which could include poor lighting, clutter on the stairs or floor or the absence of banisters, and an underlying medical or age-related condition.
“Thankfully, the injuries sustained are minor in many cases, but falls can also lead to very serious injuries, which might have enduring effects on someone’s quality of life, or sadly, lead to their death.
The last time annual accident figures were collected, nearly 350,000 people over the age of 75 attended an accident and emergency department in the UK after a home accident, of whom nearly 80 per cent had been injured in a fall. And we know that more than 2,000 people aged over 75 died as a result of injuries they sustained in a fall in England and Wales in 2007.
Falls can be prevented, however, and on National Falls Awareness Day Age Concern and Help the Aged are highlighting the things that you can do to prevent them:
Falls can be prevented, however, and on National Falls Awareness Day Age Concern and Help the Aged are highlighting the things that you can do to prevent them:
- Carpets and rugs should be taped or nailed down to avoid slips and trips
- Fitting a letter tray and rack for postal deliveries will help to minimise bending
- Rise slowly from a chair or bed
- Avoid long, trailing clothes or loose fitting footwear, which may cause you to trip
- Avoid leaving items on the stairs as they can become a tripping hazard
- Landings, stairs and hallways should be well lit
- Banisters should be sturdy or easy grip handrails give more stability
“If you do have a fall - don’t panic, try to get comfortable and keep warm until help arrives.”
Age Concern's Personal Alarm Service emergency response centre is operational 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year. The alarm is lightweight and can be worn around the neck or as a pendant, on a wrist strap or clipped to clothing. It is water resistant, so can be worn at all times whether in the bathroom, kitchen or garden.
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