Preventing Falls at Home: Room by Room

Many falls happen at home, where we spend much of our time and tend to move around without thinking about our safety. There are many changes you can make to your home that will help prevent falls and better ensure your safety.

On this page:

Floors, stairways, and hallways

• Ensure there are handrails on both sides of any stairs, and make sure they are secure. Hold the handrails when you go up or down stairs, even when you are carrying something. Don’t let anything you’re carrying block your view of the steps.
• Ensure there is good lighting with light switches at the top and bottom of stairs and on each end of a long hall. Consider using motion-activated lights that plug into electrical outlets and automatically turn on when you walk by them to help illuminate stairwells and pathways.
• Keep areas where you walk tidy. Don’t leave books, papers, clothes, or shoes on the floor or stairs.
• Check that all carpets are fixed firmly to the floor, so they won’t slip. Put no-slip strips, which you can buy at any hardware store, on tile and wooden floors.
• Don’t use throw rugs or small area rugs.
• Don’t walk on slippery, newly washed floors.

Bathrooms

• Mount grab bars near toilets and on both the inside and outside of your tub and shower.
• Place nonskid mats, strips, or carpet on all surfaces that may get wet.
• Remember to leave a light on in the bathroom at night or use a night light that turns on automatically in the dark.

Bedrooms

• Put night lights and light switches close to your bed.
• Keep a flashlight by your bed in case the power goes out and you need to get up.
• Place a landline or well-charged phone near your bed.

Kitchen

• Keep frequently used pots, pans, and kitchen utensils in a place where they are easy to reach.
• Clean up spills immediately.
• Prepare food while seated to prevent fatigue or loss of balance.

Outdoor spaces

• If you have steps leading to your front door, make sure they are not broken or uneven.
• Add non‐slip material to outdoor stairways.
• Keep the lawn, deck, or porch areas clear of debris, such as fallen branches.
• Consider installing a grab bar near the front door to provide balance while you are locking or unlocking the door.
• Turn on your porch light at night and if you leave during the day but plan on returning home after dark.
• In the winter, treat outdoor walkways with an ice melt product or sand to make them less slippery.

Other living areas

• Keep electrical cords near walls and away from walking paths.
• Arrange your furniture (especially low coffee tables) and other objects so they are not in your way when you walk.
• Make sure your sofas and chairs are the right height for you to get in and out of easily.
• Keep items you use often at waist level or within easy reach.
• Don’t stand on a chair or table to reach something that’s too high — use a “reach stick” instead or ask for help. Reach sticks are special grabbing tools that you can buy at many hardware or medical-supply stores. If you use a step stool, make sure it’s steady and has a handrail on top. Have someone stand next to you.
• Don’t let your cat or dog trip you. Know where your pet is whenever you’re standing or walking.
• Keep a list of emergency numbers in large print near each landline phone and save them under “favorites” on your mobile phone.

If you have fallen, your doctor might suggest that an occupational therapist, physical therapist, or nurse visit your home. These health care providers can assess your home’s safety and advise you about making changes to lower your risk of falls.

Tools to get help

Read and share this infographic and help spread the word about how to help prevent falls.

If you’re concerned about falling, set up systems to ensure you can get help if you fall. One option is installing an emergency response system. If you fall or need emergency help, you push a button on a special necklace or bracelet to alert 911. There is a fee for this service, and it’s usually not covered by insurance.

Another option is to carry a well-charged cordless or mobile phone with you as you move throughout the house. Have close friends and family on speed dial. Consider setting up a smart home device (a small speaker that listens and responds to commands when you call its name) that can quickly connect you to contacts or emergency response teams. Some smartwatches can be set up to make emergency calls at the push of a button and others can even detect sudden fall-like movements and automatically call for help. Ask family and friends for help setting up these tools.

Home improvement resources

Many state and local governments have education and/or home modification programs to help older people prevent falls. Check with your local health department, search the Eldercare Locator, or call 800-677-1116 to find your local Area Agency on Aging to see if there is a program near you.

Read more about falls and falls prevention.

Read about this topic in Spanish. Lea sobre este tema en español.

For more information

National Resource Center on Supportive Housing and Home Modifications
213-740-1364
[email protected]
www.homemods.org

Rebuilding Together
800-473-4229
[email protected]
www.rebuildingtogether.org

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
800-232-4636
888-232-6348 (TTY)
[email protected]
www.cdc.gov

National Center for Injury Prevention and Control                                                                                                           
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
800-232-4636
888-232-6348 (TTY)
cdcinfo@cdc. gov
www.cdc.gov/injury

National Falls Prevention Resource Center
571-527-3900
www.ncoa.org/center-for-healthy-aging/falls-resource-center/

This content is provided by the NIH National Institute on Aging (NIA). NIA scientists and other experts review this content to ensure it is accurate and up to date.

Content reviewed:
September 12, 2022

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Preventing falls at home – Better Health Channel

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Summary

Read the full fact sheet

• Falls are a major cause of injury for older people.
• Falls include slips and trips.
• Falls may be an indicator of deteriorating health.
• Falls are preventable and injury can be minimised. Exercising can help maintain strength (muscle and bone) and balance.
• Taking precautions in and around the home can help you avoid falls and injuries from falls.
• Having a fall does not mean loss of independence. Monitoring or personal alert systems or services can help older people maintain their independence and provide peace of mind for older people and their families.

About falls

In 2018-19 falls were identified as the leading cause of injury-related hospitalisations, accounting for 3 out of 4 presentations to hospital. There were close to 53,000 emergency presentations and 44,000 hospitalisations for people over 65 years.

Around 3% of older Victorians were admitted to hospital as a result of a fall, with an annual increase of 4.4% in fall-related admissions. In that same year, 62% of those aged 65 years and over and admitted to hospital as a result of a fall were women.

Older people are almost 12 times more likely to have a fall than a motor vehicle or pedestrian accident.

Falls are common among older people

It is estimated that at least one-third of people aged 65 years and over fall one or more times a year. Although many of these falls do not result in injury, they can cause:

• hip and wrist fractures
• chest injuries including rib fractures
• hip and shoulder dislocations
• head injuries and abrasions
• bruising and sprains
• fear of falling that can result in loss of confidence and restriction of activities.

What causes people to fall

There are a number of factors that contribute to your risk of falling as you grow older, including:

• age-related changes in your body such as poor eyesight, slowed reaction time, cognitive loss and reduced sensation or numbness in lower limbs
• weakening muscles and stiffening joints
• new health problems
• side effects from your medication – especially if you are taking 5 or more medicines
• sensory, unsteadiness and balance problems
• not doing enough physical activity
• poor diet and not drinking enough water
• low calcium – increases the risk of having a fracture if you do fall
• sore feet or unsafe shoes
• trip or slip hazards like rugs or floor mats, uneven or wet surfaces and poor lighting at home or outside.

A short-term illness, such as the flu or another infection, or recovering from surgery or a recent hospital stay can also temporarily increase your risk of falling.

How to prevent falls

Contrary to popular belief, falls are not inevitable and many older people can be prevented from falling. Some risk factors for falls are relatively easy to change and, where falls occur, the severity of injuries can be reduced.

The first step is to ensure that if a person is feeling unsteady or has a fall, even one that does not cause an injury, an appointment is made to discuss this with a doctor. Falls can be an indicator of an underlying health problem. Falls and balance clinics are available at many public health services to address common causes of falls.

Avoiding falls

To avoid falls and injuries from falls:

• Take steps to improve safety in and around your home.
• Look after your health. Stay up to date with routine health checks, eat a healthy diet, and exercise to improve your balance, strength and flexibility. Try to stay activeExternal Link – home or group exercise programs and tai chiExternal Link are good options.
• Wear shoes that are comfortable and fit well – they should be wide enough in the toe area, have low or no heels, and have slip-resistant soles.

Improve safety inside

To increase safety in the home to reduce your risk of falling:

• Have good lighting, especially between the bed and the bathroom or toilet at night and near any internal steps. Replace light globes with CFL energy efficient light globes of 12 watts or higher. Use plug-in night-lights and have movement-sensitive lights near stairs and the bathroom. These lights are available from most hardware stores.
• Daytime glare through glass doors and windows can be reduced with sheer blinds.
• Remove clutter and make sure walkways and corridors are kept clear and well lit.
• Repair or replace carpets with worn areas, holes or long threads.
• Check that mats and rugs are secure and have no tears or wrinkles. Put adhesive strips on all mats and rugs, including those in the bathroom.
• Make sure that chairs and beds are sturdy and easy to get into and out of, and that tables and benches do not have sharp corners.
• Wipe up spills immediately.
• Install grab rails in the bathroom (towel rails are not usually strong enough to use as grab rails). Bathroom tiles can be slippery, especially when wet. Cover these areas with a non-slip material or treatments.
• Avoid having highly polished floorboards.
• Install support rails near steps if there is no hand rail.
• To reduce the risk of falling in an emergency, make sure your house has smoke alarms in working order and a fire blanket or extinguisher that is easy to reach.
• Avoid wearing clothing that is too long or touching the floor, as this can cause you to trip over (for example, your dressing gown).
• Do not wear socks or loose slippers around the home.
• Ask an occupational therapist about ways to make your home safer.

Improve safety outside

To increase safety outside the home to reduce your risk of falling:

• Clear away garden tools.
• Avoid using ladders, or ask someone for assistance if you need to access something at height (for example reaching to a high shelf in the pantry, or changing a light bulb).
• Remove leaves, mosses, fungi and lichen that make garden paths slippery when wet.
• Mark the leading edge of outside steps (for example, with white paint) so they are easy to see.
• Install grab rails next to steps that do not have hand rails.
• Make sure outside steps are well lit.
• Keep paths well swept.
• Repair broken, uneven or cracked paths, patios and other walking surfaces.
• Report cracked footpaths to your local council.
• Wear sunglasses and a hat to reduce sun glare.

Stay healthy

To maximise your physical wellbeing and reduce your risk of falls:

• Talk to your doctor or other health professionals about:
  • your diet
  • managing your medicationsExternal Link (including non-prescription ones)
  • ways to manage chronic medical conditions, including dizzinessExternal Link and incontinenceExternal Link.

• Have your eyes testedExternal Link annually.
• Visit your podiatristExternal Link regularly to minimise foot problems.
• Wear shoes that are comfortable and fit well – they should be wide enough in the toe area, have low or no heels and have slip-resistant soles.
• Consider wearing hip protectors or limb protectors to help prevent hip fracture and skin tears in the event of a fall.
• Make sure your vitamin D levels are enough for strong bones and muscles
• Eat a healthy diet and drink plenty of fluids.
• Get active. Research shows that exercise at any age is beneficial.

Physical activity

The more active you are the better your chance of keeping your muscles strong and joints flexible.

To avoid falls and injuries from falls, exercise to maintain or improve your balance, strength and flexibility. Home or group exercise programs and tai chi are good examples. Or you could join a walking groupExternal Link or your local gym – some of which have programs specially tailored for older people. Many local councils support local walking and activity programs.

Check with your GP before starting a physical activity programExternal Link. A physiotherapistExternal Link can help design an exercise program that suits you.

Don’t fall for it – Falls can be prevented!: A guide for preventing falls for older peopleExternal Link is a handy resource that you can use to reduce your risk of falling.

What to do if you fall at home

If you happen to have a fall at home

• Don’t panic – stay still for a few minutes and try to calm down.
• Call for help if you can.
• Dial triple zero (000) for emergency services or call your local doctor for help – keep your telephone in easy reach of the floor, for instance on a low table.
• Decide whether you can get up yourself.

If you can get up by yourself

• Roll over onto your stomach and try to get into a crawling position.
• Crawl to a stable piece of furniture, like a lounge chair.
• Try to get up onto your knees.
• Push up, using your strongest leg and arms, still firmly holding onto the furniture.
• Sit down on the furniture.

See your doctor to check for injuries and to assess whether there was a medical cause for the fall.

If you can’t get up by yourself

• Try to crawl or drag yourself to somewhere on carpet and find anything that can keep you warm, such as bedclothes, a towel or clothing, while you wait for help.
• Use your personal alarmExternal Link, if you have one.
• If you don’t have a personal alarm, use an object that you can bang to make a loud noise, like a walking stick against the wall, to alert a neighbour.
• If you know no one will hear you, keep warm and try to get up again later.

See your doctor to check for injuries and to assess whether there was a medical cause for the fall.

Where to get help

• In an emergency, always call triple zero (000)
• Your GP (doctor)
• Local community health services
• Victorian Falls and Balance Service DirectoryExternal Link – find a Victorian falls and balance service near you
• My Aged CareExternal Link Tel. 1800 200 422
• Carers AustraliaExternal LinkTel. 1800 422 737
• COTAExternal Link Tel. (03) 9655 2100
• Independent Living Centre VictoriaExternal Link Tel. 1300 885 886

• Don’t fall for it – Falls can be prevented!: A guide for preventing falls for older peopleExternal Link, Department of Health, Australian Government.
• Unintentional hospital treated injury Victoria 2018-19External Link, 2020, Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit, Monash University.
• Victorian admitted episodes dataset – Public hospital admissions due to injury (VAED)External Link, Accident Research Centre, Monash University.

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Content disclaimer

Content on this website is provided for information purposes only. Information about a therapy, service, product or treatment does not in any way endorse or support such therapy, service, product or treatment and is not intended to replace advice from your doctor or other registered health professional. The information and materials contained on this website are not intended to constitute a comprehensive guide concerning all aspects of the therapy, product or treatment described on the website. All users are urged to always seek advice from a registered health care professional for diagnosis and answers to their medical questions and to ascertain whether the particular therapy, service, product or treatment described on the website is suitable in their circumstances. The State of Victoria and the Department of Health shall not bear any liability for reliance by any user on the materials contained on this website.

Reviewed on: 10-03-2022

Prevention of falls

The World Health Organization estimates that a third of all people over 65 years of age fall annually, more than half of them repeatedly.

Chief Nurse of GAUZ TO “Regional Treatment and Rehabilitation Center” Shevchenko Oksana Sergeevna gave a lecture for employees and patients of our Center on the organization of prevention of falls in medical institutions, risk factors and protection against falls, as well as preventive measures.

The incidence of falls syndrome increases with age from 30% in patients aged 65 years to 50% among those aged 80 years and older in those living at home, reaching 60% in those living in nursing homes. Approximately 10-15% of falls result in serious injuries such as head injuries or hip fractures, 20-30% are injured resulting in reduced mobility and functional status. Falls are the fifth leading cause of death in the elderly.

❗Risk factors:
Identifies risk factors for falls and protective factors that can reduce this risk. This approach defines a population strategy for reducing the risk of falls and their consequences, which should be aimed at combating risk factors and strengthening protective factors.
The World Health Organization identifies 4 groups of risk factors for falls:

1. Biological, behavioral, environmental and socio-economic. Biological risk factors include individual problems of the state of the human body. These factors can be non-modifiable (age, female sex, dementia) and potentially modifiable. The latter include changes associated with aging (decreased vision, hearing, decreased muscle strength, urinary incontinence, gait disturbances due to changes in the musculoskeletal system, central and peripheral nervous system, etc.), decreased physical functioning, predemented cognitive disorders, multiple chronic diseases, taking a large number of drugs (polypharmacy). Biological factors interact with other risk factors for falls.

2. Behavioral risk factors include factors associated with a person’s lifestyle: excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, lack of physical activity. These risk factors are potentially modifiable when strategies are applied to change a person’s behavior and lifestyle. Environmental risk factors for falls create the conditions for falls, especially in people who have biological and behavioral risk factors for falls.

3. This group of factors includes unsafe living and outdoor spaces: narrow steps, slippery floor surfaces, lack of handrails, insufficient lighting in the apartment or house, features of the building layout, potholes on the sidewalk, etc.

4. Socio-economic risk factors for falls are associated with the social conditions of life and the economic status of a person, his social interactions (living alone increases the risk of falls and their adverse outcomes), insufficient social support, limited availability of means for an elderly person to adapt to the environment.

❗Key fall protection factors

Includes providing an accessible and safe environment. Behavioral change is a key component of healthy aging and fall prevention.
✅ Stop smoking;
✅ Moderation in alcohol consumption;
✅Maintenance of normal body weight in periods of middle and old age;
✅Exercise helps prevent falls.

The problem of falls is exacerbated by the lack of awareness among older people and their relatives (caregivers) about the risks of falls and the possibilities for preventing them.

Many older people and their families do not perceive falls (especially without injury) as an important problem and do not inform the doctor about them.

Doctors in many specialties, focused on the treatment of the “profile” disease, are inert in identifying falls and assessing their risk in patients of older age groups.

Ensuring an accessible and safe environment and improving the safety of living conditions To reduce the risk of falls, it is necessary to implement a set of measures to ensure an accessible and safe environment, including in accordance with the Accessible Environment program (approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated 01.12.2015 No. 1297 “On Approval of the State Program of the Russian Federation “Accessible Environment” for 2011-2020”).

Keeping your home safe is an essential part of falling risk reduction. In this context, the development and support of services for the arrangement and repair of the place of residence of the elderly (apartments, houses), ensuring the availability of these services for citizens of older age groups is relevant. The development of the production of equipment for apartments / houses is relevant, allowing them to be adapted to the needs of an elderly person and his disabilities.

Increasing the availability of environmental adaptation and minor rehabilitation facilities Creation of resource centers to provide adaptation/rehabilitation facilities for the elderly, including the possibility of renting functional beds, wheelchairs, etc. The development of regional production of small rehabilitation means, orthopedic shoes and orthopedic devices is topical.

#flrc #prevention of falls #old agejoy #healthy #day of the elderly

Dear citizens!

The People’s Front is conducting a survey to identify problems associated with making an appointment with a doctor through the State Services portal. By answering questions, you provide valuable feedback and help improve the quality of the appointment process, as well as make primary care more accessible.

How to protect yourself from falls in old age

The aging of the world’s population is associated with an increase in the pathology characteristic of older age groups, in particular, fractures due to falls. In youth, fractures for a person do not pose a serious danger: the bones grow together quickly enough. In older people, recovery takes longer, and the injury itself can have serious consequences. Sidorova Nina Sergeevna, chief freelance geriatric specialist of the Ministry of Health of Chuvashia, talks about the causes of falls in the elderly and their prevention.

– Falls in old age, as a key geriatric syndrome, were seriously discussed in Russia 10 years ago. Since then, more and more attention has been paid to the problem in domestic therapeutic practice. Today, there is an understanding in geriatrics that falls in old age are not sudden or random.

From a medical point of view, falling in old age is a multifactorial syndrome that consists of many causes. Among the external causes are uncomfortable shoes, bad glasses, improper and uncomfortable organization of the household environment.

Internal causes – a violation of the musculoskeletal system, decreased vision, hearing, problems of the nervous and cardiovascular systems. Many of these phenomena can be managed and the risk of falling can be reduced.

– At what age do falls most often occur with broken bones in old age? And what bones are injured most often?

– Falls have the highest incidence and mortality in people over 65 years of age. With age, the probability of getting injured in a fall increases: at the age of 60, about 30% of people experience falls, by the age of 80 this figure rises to 50%. The incidence of femoral fractures among patients over 60 years of age is twice as high and is diagnosed in 237.3 thousand people a year.

The most common injuries are fractures of the femoral neck, wrist and head.

– What else are the consequences of falls dangerous for?

– The consequences of falls are dangerous not only with injuries. Falls are also dangerous with psychological and social consequences: the fear of falling again can lead to the development of depression. People withdraw into themselves, feel insecure, communicate less, go out less often, begin to eat worse due to loss of appetite. All this contributes to a decrease in the quality of life, an acceleration of the loss of physical and cognitive functioning, and an increased need for outside help and care.

In addition, falls have enormous economic consequences for the family and society. The cost of falls and their consequences is one of the leading health care costs worldwide and continues to rise.

– What is being done to prevent falls and fractures at the national level?

– Prevention of falls is an important task for healthy
aging, maintaining the quality of life of the elderly and his independence from
outside help. Each region is gradually implementing a set of measures
aimed at preventing falls and fractures in the elderly and senile
, which was developed within the framework of the federal project “Older Generation”
of the national project “Demography”. The Chuvash Republic is no exception; an interdisciplinary working group has been set up in the region to develop and implement such a set of measures, which included specialists from various fields – geriatricians, orthopedic traumatologists, endocrinologists, rheumatologists, and specialists from social services
public services. Since February 2022, an orthopedic traumatologist’s office has been operating at the Republican Geriatric Center, now the republic is approving the procedure for interaction with social services, patient routing, and the organization of a fall and fracture prevention office will be the final point.

– Please, tell us how to properly equip your home so that there are no falls for older people in everyday life?

– Half of the cases of falls can be prevented with the right housekeeping. The first thing relatives can do is to organize the space in the apartment of an elderly person as much as possible. Remove unnecessary items that you can trip over. Make sure that there is good lighting, there is a night light, the floors are not slippery, you can add neat handrails along the route to the bathroom or kitchen and comfortable slippers.

The next basic recommendation of geriatricians for patients at risk is to strengthen
muscles. This can be done through exercise and nutrition. So, a sufficient amount of protein is important in the diet, if in middle age the protein norm is about 0.8 g per kg of body weight, then in old age this figure should not be lower than
1.2 g per kg.

Need to move more. At least 150 minutes a week to walk on the street, and
at home to do exercises, breathing exercises. In order to have a point of support in case of imbalance when walking, it is recommended to use a cane. Moreover, it should not be shy, but should be perceived as an element of the image.