The eighth annual Falls Prevention Awareness Day will be observed on September 23, the first day of fall, according to the National Council on Aging (NCOA).
According to the NCOA’s website, this event is held to raise awareness of about how to prevent fall-related injuries among older adults.
The theme for this year’s event is “Take A Stand to Prevent Falls,” and the official social media hashtag is #FPAD15.
The NCOA’s website includes various tools and activities that physical therapists and rehab professionals can use to plan events and activities to promote fall prevention among older people in their communities.
The American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) notes on its website that, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one-third of adults age 65 and older fall each year in the United States, and 20% to 30% of those who fall suffer moderate to severe injuries as a result.
Physical therapists, the website continues, can help in risk reduction and prevention of falls.
The APTA website includes various resources and information that therapists can use to share with patients and others the value of falls prevention and the benefits of balance.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, on its website, encourages physical therapists, rehab professionals, or other healthcare providers to screen patients by asking if they have fallen in the past year, feel unsteady, or worry about falling; review patients’ medications and stop, switch, or reduce the dose of drugs that increase the risk for falls; and recommend daily vitamin D with calcium.
For more information, visit the National Council on Aging, the American Physical Therapy Association, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
[Source(s): National Council on Aging, American Physical Therapy Association, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]
