Page 46 - Preventing Falls: How to Develop Community-based Fall Prevention Programs for Older Adults
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Appendix E — Template for Developing a Sustainability Plan
A GUIDE TO IMPLEMENTING EFFECTIVE COMMUNITY-BASED FALL PREVENTION PROGRAMS
Remember that the needs, beliefs, values,
and expectations of target audiences vary.
• Do the older adults you wish to reach see
themselves as active and youthful?
• Are they committed to living
independently?
• Should you reach out to adult children of
older adults or health care providers in
your campaign?
The more you know about your target
audience, the more effectively you can tailor
your promotional efforts. For example, the
Internet may not be an effective way to reach
certain groups of older adults.
Step 4: Develop your messages for the
campaign. Messages can be informative and
Step 2: Set your campaign goal and convey new facts, or be persuasive and alter
objectives. Identify the goals and objectives attitudes or change behavior. Sometimes
for your outreach campaign. A goal is the they are both.
overall health improvement you hope to
achieve, reducing falls among older adults • Many messages begin by raising
in your community. An objective is a specific awareness about an issue or program so
outcome that you can use to measure people can agree with it, understand it,
progress toward your goal. believe it, and then eventually act on it.
Set realistic and measurable objectives. • Consider gender, culture, and age groups.
For example: Messages aimed at people aged 60 to 70
should be framed differently from those
• Double the enrollment of your Tai Chi class for individuals over 70. If the older adults
for older adults.
you want to reach perceive themselves
• Increase the percentage of older as youthful, they may ignore a message
adults who installed grab bars or about the health problems of aging. A
stair railings as a result of your message focused on “staying healthy and
organization’s activities. independent” will generate more positive
Step 3: Identify the target audiences your response than one focused on “preventing
campaign should reach. Identify the groups hip fractures and other injuries.”
of people you need to reach to meet the goal • Pretest your messages with a sample of
you set in Step 2. Learn as much as you can the audience and see if your message
about them. appeals to them.
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