Karen’s Korner,
As I said in the past article, I am going to start a series of articles outlining the safety issues that affect seniors, whether at home or out and about. We are going to cover ten issues as safety concerns and how to avoid and prevent them from affecting us, as seniors.
The first issue we need to consider is that of Falls: (Facts and how to prevent falls) Over 14 million, or 1 in 4 older adults report falling every year. (Falls are the leading cause of injury for adults, ages 65 years and older. Older adult falls are common, costly, and preventable. While not all falls result in an injury, about 37% of those who fall reported an injury that required medical treatment or restricted their activity for at least one day, resulting in an estimated nine million fall injuries.) (CDC)
Declines in Physical Fitness, Impaired Vision, Medication Side Effects, Chronic Diseases, Surgical Procedures, Environmental Hazards, and Behavioral Hazards are a few of the causes of falls. (AGINGCARE)
Prevention is Essential:
WEAR A PUSH BUTTON EMERGENCY ALARM…IF YOU HAVE A TENDENCY TO FALL…
ASK YOUR MEDICAL PROVIDER FOR EXERCISES THAT MAY PREVENT FALLING BY IMPROVING YOUR BALANCE…
WEAR NON-SLIP FOOTWEAR AND FLAT THIN-SOLED SHOES THAT FIT WELL…
USE A CANE OR WALKER…
AVOID SLICK OR WET SURFACES…
NEVER HURRY TO ANSWER PHONE OR DOOR…
KEEP WALKWAYS, STAIRS AND ENTRY WAYS CLEAR FROM CLUTTER…
WIRES OR EXTENTION CORDS SHOULD NEVER BE IN THE WALKWAYS…
MONITORING MEDICATION AND KEEPING AN UPDATED LIST OF MEDICATIONS AND SIDE EFFECTS…
USE HANDRAILS, GRAB BARS, AND ASSISTIVE DEVICES WHEN NEEDED…
BE ALERT, ATTENTIVE, AND AWARE…FALLS CAN BE PREVENTED!