Shorter days of sunlight, cooler weather, and the first day of Fall is quickly approaching. With the first day of Fall arriving on Wednesday, September 22, so is the first day of Fall Prevention Awareness Week ending on September 29. This is a special day to reflect on how we all can minimize the risk of falling injuries and review how tragic falling injuries are to all of us as a community.
This year we reflect on the successes resulting from the focus on fall prevention in 2023.
The Fall Prevention Awareness Week Impact Reports (ncoa.org) for 2023 provides valuable insights for professionals and others involved in lessening the impact of preventable falls across the country.
Outpatient physical therapists interact with the elderly community daily, many of which are at risk of falling or have suffered from a recent fall injury. That means educating older adults about exercises that improve or maintain mobility.
Recommended Fall Prevention Exercises
Walk more briskly! Studies have found that the speed at which you walk correlates to risk of falling. Walking at a speed of less than 1.0 meter per second increases your risk of falling and need for some type of medical/physical intervention. You are more likely to be hospitalized should your walking speed be less than .6 m/sec. Walking speed is considered a 6 vital sign and good indication of our health and mortality.
Strengthen your legs! It is so important to realize our legs are the pillars in which we support our body. Leg strength and mortality have also been associated. Simple exercises, such as raising yourself up and down from a seated position can be a simple and effective way to strengthen your legs. In the physical therapy clinic or at home, counting the number of repetitions of sit-to-stand performed in 30 seconds provides a good estimate of ones’ leg strength. Twelve repetitions completed in thirty seconds is considered normal for the average male 65-69 years 0f age.
Improve your endurance! It is important to have sufficient endurance to walk from one end of a supermarket to the far end where most essential products are kept. If you tire easily due to decreased endurance you may likely increase your risk of falling.
Improve your mobility! Some recent studies suggest your inability to get yourself up from the floor is also associated with your mortality rate. Individuals who have little or no difficulty getting up from the floor may have a 5x greater life expectancy than those who have difficulties getting up from the floor. While walking is a horizontal mobility activity, getting up from the floor is a vertical mobility activity requiring strength and flexibility of your body.
Improve your Balance! Do you find yourself catching your toes when you walk, shuffling your feet, or holding onto walls or furniture when you walk? Your balance may not be sufficient and may contribute to an increased risk of falling.
The reason an individual falls may be numerous. Medications, the home environment, vision impairments, and nervous system impairments may also be very significant factors for falling. It is imperative that all aging individuals become aware of the health hazards associated with falling. Please speak to your health care provider, physician, or a therapist should you experience a near fall episode or have concerns regarding any decline in your physical abilities.
The ResQUp for Fall Prevention
The ResQUp is a mobility device that has been designed and produced to aid those with mobility difficulties. The ResQUp has three incremental horizontal levels, each at 4.5 inches to assist a fallen individual return to a seat height with little to no assistance of another. Raising yourself up from the floor independently or semi-independently will lessen the risk of a lifting injury of a potential rescuer coming to the assistance of the fallen, also getting up from the floor gives the fallen individual the opportunity to strengthen themselves and improve their functional mobility.
Additional benefits of utilizing the ResQUp:
Endurance Training: Improve the number of steps you can perform in two minutes time. Repetitively placing the right then left foot on and off the 4.5/9.0/13.5-inch step. Never have both feet on the ResQUp at any one time. CLICK HERE for more information about the two-minute step test.
Balance Training: Balance can be improved by having a right or left foot on a horizontal level for several seconds. Progression can be done by raising the arms, head movements, or closing the eyes. These activities are higher level activities and most likely require the supervision of a health care provider.
Mobility Training: Those fearful of not being able to get to the floor or back up from the floor level can start by moving from a standard height chair of 18 inches to the upper most level of the ResQUp level of 13.5 inches. As ones’ upper body strength and confidence improves, you may be able to move closer to the floor level and then back up to chair height using one of three different methods.
Consult a licensed physical therapist or other qualified healthcare provider should you have any questions whether the ResQUp may be an appropriate device for you. Make strength, mobility, balance, and endurance an important aspect of your life as you age.
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