Fall Prevention

Falls are a leading cause of emergency room visits considering 35%-40% of people over the age of 65 fall at least once a year. In addition, falls are the leading cause of death due to injury. If you’ve fallen once, you are 2-3 times more likely to fall again in the next 3 months. With the Minnesota winter upon us very soon, it’s helpful to know the risk factors and some helpful tips for fall prevention when navigating inside your Minneapolis home or outside on the icy streets and sidewalks. Some common risk factors to keep in mind when caring for someone 65 years and older are poor eyesight, history of stroke or progressive neurological disease. Many people who are unsteady on their feet, have arthritis, joint disease or even taking medications that cause weakness also fall under this high risk group. These risk factors, and more, are important to know when trying to prevent a fall. 95% of hip fractures are caused by falls – 40% of those hospitalized for hip fracture do not return to independent living and 20% will die within a year. This sounds like a scary statistic, but with some smart prevention steps, you or your loved one can reduce the risk of falling in your everyday activities. With more than 55% of falls happening inside the home and another 23% occuring outside, but near the home, take some time to ensure the home areas are not a safety hazard. Use nightlights in your bedroom, bathroom and hallway areas, remove any throw rugs and install anti-slip stairway treads at garage entry to home. Make sure you’re wearing properly fitting footwear, exercise regularly to increase muscle flexibility, strength and balance and even consider obtaining an emergency call system. If there are loose steps or items blocking a clear pathway in and out of the home, now is a good time to take care of those projects, before it gets too cold and icy outside. By doing some of these things, you can greatly reduce the risk of a painful, costly accident. To help ensure further prevention, consider installing some specialized medical equipment in the home. A raised toilet seat can really reduce the risk of falling and are easy to manage. In the shower area, there are several items to use – a rubber bath mat, a shower chair and even grab bars would help getting in and out of the shower daily. Since a bad fall can also lead to further medical problems, resulting in higher costs and impacted quality of life, it is worth the time now to ensure a safe environment for you or your aging family members. Fear of falling can keep you from doing the things you love. By taking the necessary steps and implementing some of these prevention steps, it will ensure you can continue to live independently in your home and maintain your quality of life.

Medical Equipment for Fall Prevention

The bathroom is a dangerous room in your home due to all the hard, sometimes slippery surfaces. Medical supplies that can improve your safety are:

Shower chair

Rubber bath mat

Grab bars

Raised toilet seat

Fear of falling can keep you or your loved one from doing the things you love to do. Take the necessary steps to ensure you can continue to live independently in your Minnesota home and maintain your quality of life.

Tags: fall prevention, grab bars, ice can tip, medical equipment Minneapolis, medical equipment MN, medical supplies, medical supply store Minnesota, raised toilet seat, shower chair, tub rail