Slip and Fall Prevention

Someone mentioned slip and fall prevention aids for my father. At first I dismissed it but then as I read, I realized that some really simple things that could make his life easier. He said he really doesn’t need anything but after recent health issues, slip and fall prevention devises would really help.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

Slipping and falling is just not an elderly issue, it spans all ages and there are simple things that people can do to address areas that could trip someone up. The first thought is handrails. Handrails have saved me a few times. Going down the stairs, I have lost my footing and grabbed on to steady myself. Have you looked at your staircase handrails to see if they are securely mounted to the wall and if they are easy to grab onto. My former home had a vertical 2x4 for a hand rail. That was not an effective railing.

Bathrooms are dangerous places. Many are very cramp/small and often get slippery after a shower. Bathroom rugs can cause tripping. With the elderly and with people who have just gone through health issues, grab bars near the toilet are very handy. Hospitals have grab bars in their bathrooms for a reason.

Looking around my house, there are many tripping hazards. Cords that are not securely fixed to the wall and one can catch their footing on these. The entrance rug is not fastened down and tends to bunch up. The dining-room rug slides. I do not have a rail or anything going out onto the back deck or into the garage. Whether in everyday life or post-SFHT life, a slip and fall could seriously injure you and yours.

Some ways to help prevent falls indoors are:



-Keep rooms free of clutter, especially on floors
-Use plastic or carpet runners
-Wear low-heeled shoes
-Do not walk in socks, stockings, or slippers
-Be sure rugs have skid-proof backs or are tacked to the floor
-Be sure stairs are well lit and have rails on both sides
-Put grab bars on bathroom walls near tub, shower, and toilet
-Use a nonskid bath mat in the shower or tub
-Keep a flashlight next to your bed
-Use a sturdy stepstool with a handrail and wide steps
-Add more lights in rooms
-Buy a cordless phone so that you don’t have to rush to the phone when it rings and so that you can call for help if you fall.

What are Ways to Prevent Falls and Related Fractures?

 

Great thread and timely! My parents are both elderly and Mom is going through cancer treatments which have caused her additional difficulties all around! My self, I have had a few serious falls in the bath room due slick floors, and a punctured lung isn't fun and can kill you with in minute! Just the other day, my poor mom fell in the bath room and even with three of us, couldn't pick her up so we had to call the fire dept to come help!
Bath rooms are the number one cause of issues, and a lot can be done to eliminate them! Why people build bathrooms with slick surfaces is stupid to my mind, the one place you want to be sure footed and every thing is slick! My brother and I tore out the entire bath room and started from scratch with a mud set shower that is wheel chair accessable, a toilet platform that that brings the throne up 4 inches, a rough stone floor that has ample traction and yet is easy to clean and care for. Grab handles surrounding the throne and shower, as well as ether side of the door. And built in shelves to store things within easy reach! Now to rebuild the second bathroom, and a wheelchair ramp!!! Kitchens are another area, and even worse, with cabinet doors that are really great for a sharp honk on the head! When we built our home, we built with out doors to remove this issue, we built with rough stone floors, and rounded counter edges. No carpets unless they are secured, even the dogs have a hard time with carpets that bunch up or slide around!

 

A few rubber tub/shower floor mats in the tub/shower are always good. Heck, put some on the tub rails/top if they like to sit or put a foot on them to dry. Just remember to pull them up every so often to clean under them as they can get filthy under there.

 

@Motomom34, I teach tai chi to seniors for fall prevention. We have been part of the Fall Prevention Consortium for many years. And over that time, Hawaii has become number 1 in Fall Prevention last I heard.

Tai chi helps by improving situational and self awareness, improving body structure and posture, strengthening muscles while gently stretching and improving breathing. You wouldn't think it, but better breathing helps balance.

 

That is really good to know. Without research, most would assume Tai Chi is like karate etc. Good to know that Tai Chi is good for the elderly. I have a friend who needs balance help.

 

I've had testimonials from senior students telling me how much it has helped them. And sometimes they give specific examples of how they would have fallen before, but didn't.

With the Fall Prevention Consortium, we are evidence based and it really does make a difference. Other than getting thrown in martial arts classes, I rarely fall. Knock on wood. I only remember three times in the past several decades. Twice was coaching soccer and scrimmaging with the girls and once was rolling out of a hammock.

 

Problem is that as we age we are hit by a tripple whammy, failing eye sight and depth perception, dizziness inner ear and balance problems, and a greatly increased healing time for increasingly brittle bones. In many cases today for the truly elderly, 90 +, artificial joints and metal pins may be the only stop gap solutions available for broken bones. At 79, I have a serious problem picking my feet up high enough to clear curbs, step ups between rooms, etc and great difficulty stepping down if it is not pre planed. Slip and fall prevention may prevent an elderly persons from having an event that could either be fatal, limit their mobility for the rest of their lives or lead to months of institutional care and rehab care as a best outcome.

 

At one time, I went with my eye doc's recommendation and tried bifocals. BIG MISTAKE! It made stairs very dangerous! I went back to regular glasses for GP, and good reading glasses for close work.
My elderly Mother really liked small throw tugs, had them all over her house. After her passing, I have her home now, and will sell eventually. But first thing I did was get rid of most of those little foot traps. I was always stumbling on them.

 

We would use non-skid-tape on our heliport decking also on certain stairs + boat decking and steps.
Its kind of ugly for home usage but not as ugly as a serious fall.

 

We've even painted heliports and diamond plate decking throwing coarse sandblasting sand on top of the wet paint as we went along, I would imagine this would work in say ones garage?

 

I have used that as well as mixing the sand in the paint. Different size grains for different surfaces. Boat decks and trailer walkways coarse grains, shower pans and steps finer and so on.

 

I rigged trapeze bar for the lady living in my house in both the bath room and bedroom ,
Railing around the bath and hall ways.
Bathroom floor is carpeted and the rare no slip pads in the bath .
Nothing is fool proof . she has passes out and gotten pretty messed up , recovered now.

Years ago as a mechanic , having had a number of injuries from lifting equipment I decided to start building lift equipment , and I put it every where I can.
I even mounted a Harbor Freight truck crane to my tool box ,and reenforced it of course . one of the best tools i've made.

 

Often as I've shown and demonstrated this tool NO ONE takes advantage of the idea and still continue to do things the hard way .

 

I hate to push or even mention brand name pants, but for wood deck I can't beat Bear deck over. We have used it on deck of all types, from boat docks to equipment trailers.

 

That is what my grandfather used to do. He would mix sand in with the paint that he applied to the front steps. I forgot about that. It really did help with slippery stairs.

 

I wore the same pair of boots through all four years of my Airforce hitch. Had them supple and very comfy. Lihe leather sneakers.
Reupped into the Navy. A few months on my ship's nonskid decks ground the soles to nothing! I found there's a very good reason the Navy issued us a new pair every six months.