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Health & Fitness

Senior Care - A New Free Guide to Staying Safe: Falls

Senior Care - A New Free Guide to Staying Safe: Falls written by Stan Lawson for Sequoia Senior Solutions.

You know your aging parents will be much happier remaining in their beloved, familiar home. However, you are concerned about all the things that can go wrong? Falls, kitchen dangers, difficulty getting in and out of the tub are a few of the worries that keep us up at night. What if Mom falls after you talk to her in the evening? If she can’t get up, she’ll be on the floor the entire night before you call in the morning or the caregiver arrives. Sequoia Senior Solutions has produced a new free guide: Senior Care – A Guide to Staying Safe to offer you simple solutions that can help your loved ones age in place.

Falls are the leading cause of injury to seniors. 75% of falls occur in the home. Over one third of all people over 65 will have a severe fall each year. Out of those over 53% will require some form of medical care with a broken hip the most common and debilitating result from a fall. Worse, two thirds of those who fall become 2 to 3 times more prone to do so again. 40% of all nursing home admissions are due to injuries from falls.

Fall Prevention

Falls are generally caused by three factors: slipping on slick surfaces, tripping over objects, or sliding on unsecured flooring. The key to fall prevention is to remove these hazards.

1.  Slipping on slick surfaces In the bathroom getting in and out of the tub can be physically challenging and poses a high risk of injury. Slippery surfaces like bottoms and sides of the tub further contribute to this risk.     Solutions
  • To prevent wet floors make sure the bathroom fan is working well, and think about adding a dehumidifier. Wet floors increase the likelihood of falls. In the bathroom, falls are especially dangerous. Hard floors combine with many things to hit ones head on, making an injury more likely.
  • Non-slip suction mats or rubber silicone appliqués in and around the tub are an excellent way to prevent injuries. To ensure sturdy bath mobility, a loved one or a caregiver should place one mat on the tub’s bottom and one outside the tub for stepping out onto.
  • Grab bars provide additional support for getting in and out of bathtubs, or for raising and lowering the body once in the water. Place institutional-grade stainless steel bars all around the tub: a vertical U-shaped bar above the faucet assists in entering and exiting the tub, while a horizontal bar at the foot end and on the back wall allow the bather to safely get in and out of a seated position. Towel bars should never be used as support bars.
2.  Tripping over objects Is there a narrow pathway for unsteady seniors to walk through a room or down a hallway? Are precarious stacks of papers on the verge of falling into the walkway where they will present a fall risk to seniors? Is there any oxygen tubing in the way?

Making over their home can make sure it is a safe and welcoming place for your elderly loved one. These tips can help you make their home as safe as it can be to prevent accidents and serious injuries.

To read the rest of this article, please go to Senior Care - A New Free Guide to Staying Safe: Falls and while you are there, please get your free copy to Senior Care – A Guide to Staying Safe.










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