Tripping and falling at home is a significant cause of injuries for elderly loved ones. To help your loved one avoid these problems, you have to be proactive about seeking out potential hazards. Use these fall prevention tips to help ensure your loved one’s safety at home.
Encourage Her to Wear Foot Coverings
If your elderly loved one isn’t wearing shoes, slippers, or other foot coverings, she can run the risk of damaging her feet and even tripping more easily. Sturdy shoes will not only help your elderly loved one to remain stable, but will also offer protection.
Bump up the Lighting
The brighter the area is, the more likely your loved one will be to spot potential tripping hazards before she gets to them. Make sure that the lighting that’s already there is sufficient and if it isn’t, change it out. Don’t forget to look into installing night lights for evenings and overnight.
Remove Any Tripping Hazards
Look for any potential hazards that can make your loved one trip. If there’s anything that seems to be a recurring hazard for her, look for ways to remove it or to fix the hazard. Throw rugs, cords, and even clutter can all be contributing factors for tripping and falling.
Put in Hand Rails All Over the House
If your loved one has a way to catch herself should she start to fall, she’s likely to do less damage to herself if she does trip. This is where hand rails can be a lifesaver. Look for places that would benefit from having a hand rail, such as hallways, bathrooms, and larger rooms without a lot of furniture she could grab onto.
Do Frequent Fall Prevention Safety Checks
Your loved one’s safety isn’t something that you can ensure with one safety check. Therefore, you’ll need to make frequent checks throughout the house, especially if your loved one’s health and abilities are changing rapidly. Talk to your loved one’s home care providers about fall prevention tips and how you can find potential trouble areas before your loved one has an incident.
The more that you can pay attention to your loved one’s changing health, the easier it can be to spot potential trip hazards.
Elderly Care in Port St. Lucie FL
If you or an aging loved one are considering elderly care in Port St. Lucie, FL, please call the caring staff at Activa Home Health Care at 561-819-0460. Serving Delray Beach, Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, Wellington, Jupiter, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Lauderhill, Coral Springs, Pompano Beach and surrounding communities.
