I love to sail in these waters near my home in Florida, always with safety precautions! I want lifelines that surround the boat to reduce the odds of anyone falling overboard. This is first line protection against drowning! By regulation, I carry a life ring on board as secondary prevention. This device can be tossed to anyone who falls overboard to reduce the odds of drowning. Also, again by regulation, there are enough life jackets on board for each person to have one. At sea, the more safety measures, the better.
I bring this same safety perspective to preventing falls! I have had lots of experience, as I will describe, some personal and some professional. For this website, I discuss six major categories for preventing falls. Some categories, such as Activities of Daily Living, are essential. As we age, they naturally will take more attention to maintain wellness. I will focus primarily on older adults, for whom the risks of injury are greatest. Nonetheless, these risks may apply at all ages.
Purpose of this Website
Older adults are at high risk of falls that lead to injury and death. About one in four of us will experience a fall each year! When this fall results in injury, we may need extensive care, rehabilitation, and therapy. Serious injuries threaten our independence and give our family members and friends reason for concern. With this site, we aim to:
- Increase awareness of specific fall risks
- Increase knowledge of ways to intervene – to reduce fall risks
- Improve options for living well at home
Over the past 30 years, researchers have studied what works to reduce falls and fall injuries. This body of work has yielded what I call fall risks or risk areas, and lifesavers, also called interventions.
