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Ensuring Slips and Falls Don’t Happen The risk of death or serious injury from falls is higher among those above the age of 65. Ensuring slips and falls don’t happen is crucial to minimizing this risk. Fall prevention is a vital area of geriatric care. The scope of a slip and fall prevention program in America is quite comprehensive. According to the latest statistics by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), one of three adults aged 65 or more falls every year, though less than half of those who fall actually discuss it with their healthcare provider. The number of nonfatal fall injuries in older adults was 2.3 million in 2010. The more worrying statistic though is that approximately 21,700 elderly adults died that year from unintentional falls.
The Elderly Fall More Often When you’re young, you may fall while tripping over something or you don’t watch where you’re going. In adults, falling could be the result of an accident or a medical condition that causes loss of balance, weakness or vertigo. The elderly, on the other hand, fall more often and more easily. There are many reasons why older adults are more susceptible to falling: - Loss of footing on wet or slippery ground or floor http://www.hqbk.com/
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- Tripping over uneven surfaces such as sidewalks, curbs, or floor elevations - Slowing down of reflexes - Loss of muscle mass - Osteoporosis - Diminished vision - Medication which causes drowsiness, dizziness, confusion, disorientation, or slowed reflexes So the risk of sprains, hip fractures and death is significantly higher in elderly people who have a greater tendency to fall.
Minimizing the Risk of Falls It is therefore important to protect the elderly by minimizing these risks of falling. This is what slip and fall prevention programs are about – identifying the factors which could cause a fall, be it physical or environmental, and removing or avoiding them. Multi-specialty healthcare centers offer comprehensive slip and fall prevention programs. With a team of experienced healthcare professionals in the fields of orthopedics, neurology, advanced diagnostics, geriatric care, pain management, physical therapy, rehabilitation, and other related fields, a detailed analysis is carried out to determine the elderly person’s risk of falling. A personalized treatment plan is then developed to improve strength, balance and walking speed and step length via specific exercise and training programs. http://www.hqbk.com/
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1-718-769-2521
Removing Environmental Factors Causing Falls The other major element of a slip and fall prevention program by a reputed healthcare center involves identifying and modifying the environmental factors in and around the home that could trigger falls such as slippery floors, hurdles in rooms or corridors, staircases and wobbly furniture. One of the big advantages of the slip/fall prevention program at a reputed healthcare center is that it is designed to ensure that the elderly individual is able to maintain his/her independence while improving mobility. It enables the elderly to enjoy a better quality of life with lesser chances of falling. Posted by HealthQuest http://www.hqbk.com/
http://www.hqbk.com/
1-718-769-2521