Page 8 - Preventing Falls: How to Develop Community-based Fall Prevention Programs for Older Adults

Appendix E — Template for Developing a Sustainability Plan

A GUIDE TO IMPLEMENTING EFFECTIVE COMMUNITY-BASED FALL PREVENTION PROGRAMS

This revision of the 2008 publication, Falls can be deadly. Among older adults,
Preventing Falls: How to Develop Community- falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries.
based Fall Prevention Programs for Older Each year, at least 25,000 older adults die
Adults, will improve your organization’s as a result of falls. And the rate of fall-
ability to reach out to the older members related deaths among older adults in the
of your community as well as enhance United States has been rising steadily over
your capacity to implement and maintain the past decade.
effective fall prevention programs. Falls are preventable. People are living
longer and falls will increase unless we
Please note: The interventions and make a serious commitment to providing
programs discussed in this guide are not effective fall prevention programs.
designed for hospital patients, assisted Fortunately, the opportunity to help
living or nursing home residents, or reduce falls among older adults has
patients with dementia or Alzheimer’s never been better, because research has
disease. These persons require programs demonstrated that falls can be prevented.
and interventions that are specifically Today, there are effective fall prevention
designed for their increased frailty programs that can be used in community
and fall risk. settings. By offering these programs in

our communities, we can reduce falls and
Why fall prevention help older adults maintain their health and
is important independence.

Falls are a major threat to the health and
independence of older adults. Each year,
one in three older adults aged 65 and older
experiences a fall, and people who fall
once are two to three times more likely
to fall again.

Falls can be devastating. Falls are
the leading cause of nonfatal injuries
among older adults. One out of ten falls
causes a serious injury, such as a hip
fracture or head injury, which requires
hospitalization. In addition to the physical
and emotional pain, many people need
to spend at least a year recovering in a
long-term care facility. Some are never
able to live independently again.

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