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Tag Archive for: Fall Prevention

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Fall Prevention O-Tip of the Week: Keep Frequently Used Items Within Reach

Our O-Tip of the week series we will be providing valuable “OT-Approved Life Hacks” to provide you with simple and helpful solutions for living. 

For the month of November, Fall Prevention Month, our O-Tip series will provide helpful ways to prevent falls at home and in the community.

Keep frequently used items in easy to reach locations to reduce the need for using a chair or ladder to reach items in high cupboards or the top shelf of the closet.  If these items are required, ask a family member or neighbor to help you reach them instead of attempting to do so yourself.

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Fall Prevention O-Tip of the Week: Improve Grip and Visibility on Exterior Surfaces

Our O-Tip of the week series we will be providing valuable “OT-Approved Life Hacks” to provide you with simple and helpful solutions for living. 

For the month of November, Fall Prevention Month, our O-Tip series will provide helpful ways to prevent falls at home and in the community.

Exterior steps can become extremely slippery in wet, snowy or icy weather.  Painting over your outside stairs with a mix of paint and sand will help to increase grip and improve visibility.  Be sure to always keep your steps clear and use salt in the winter months to ensure steps aren’t a fall hazard.

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Fall Prevention O-Tip of the Week: Let’s Get Physical

Our O-Tip of the week series we will be providing valuable “OT-Approved Life Hacks” to provide you with simple and helpful solutions for living.

For the month of November, Fall Prevention Month, our O-Tip series will provide helpful ways to prevent falls at home and in the community.

Did you know that taking part in regular physical activity including cardiovascular, strength-building and balance activities can help to prevent falls as you age?  Speak with your physician or Occupation Therapist about which activities are safe for you and maintain a regular routine to help reduce your risk.

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Fall Prevention O-Tip of the Week: Invest in Indoor Shoes

Our O-Tip of the week series we will be providing valuable “OT-Approved Life Hacks” to provide you with simple and helpful solutions for living.

For the month of November, Fall Prevention Month, our O-Tip series will provide helpful ways to prevent falls at home and in the community.

Wearing shoes inside the home helps to ensure you always have a proper non-slip grip on all surfaces. If this isn’t comfortable for you, invest in a pair of indoor slippers or snug-fitting socks with grips on the bottom.

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A Simple Guide to Fall Prevention

Falls are the leading cause of injury amoung older adults in Canada and the number one cause of brain and spinal cord injury in seniors.  November is Fall Prevention Month – learn about the strategies Occupational Therapists use to reduce the risk for older adults in our post, Falls are a Leading Cause of Injury- Let’s Talk Prevention.

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The A to Z of OT: I is For… Injury Prevention

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”  Benjamin Franklin

Did you know that in Canada falls are the leading cause of injury amoung older Canadians?  And that 20-30% of seniors experience one or more falls each year?  Falls are also the number one cause of both brain and spinal cord injury in seniors.  How can we put a stop to injuries caused by falls?  PREVENTION. Really, it is the best medicine.  Learn how Occupational Therapists help to prevent falls in the following episode from our OT-V video series.

 

 

October is Occupational Therapy Month and to celebrate we will be sharing a new series called the A to Z of OT.  In our attempts to further educate the public about what Occupational Therapists do we will be highlighting twenty-six of the awesome ways OTs provide Solutions for Living.  

We encourage you to follow along and to add to the discussion by highlighting other awesome things OTs help with for each corresponding letter!

 

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O-Tip of the Week: Properly Recover from a Fall

Our O-Tip of the week series we will be providing valuable “OT-Approved Life Hacks” to provide you with simple and helpful solutions for living. 

For the month of November, Fall Prevention Month, our O-Tip series will concentrate on preventing falls at home and in the community.

Despite best efforts to reduce the risk of falling at home and in the community, falls DO still occur.  It is important to be aware of the steps to take to get up from a fall to help prevent further injury.

The following from the 2017 Fall Prevention Month Toolkit provides step-by-step instructions to safely get up from a fall:  

Find more helpful resources on Fall Prevention by visiting http://fallpreventionmonth.ca/.

 

 

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O-Tip of the Week: Safer Transitions

Our O-Tip of the week series we will be providing valuable “OT-Approved Life Hacks” to provide you with simple and helpful solutions for living. 

For the month of November, Fall Prevention Month, our O-Tip series will concentrate on preventing falls at home and in the community.

Falls are the leading cause of injury among older Canadians with 20-30% of seniors experiencing one or more falls each year (Statistics Canada).  With seniors most falls often happen when someone is just trying to go about their day by having a shower, coming down the stairs, or taking a leisurely walk.

This week’s O-Tip of the Week returns to the bathroom, which can be the most dangerous room in the home, especially for seniors.  Transitions into and out of the tub or shower are often the cause of falls in the bathroom.  The installation of grab bars in the tub or shower can greatly reduce this risk.  An Occupational Therapist can help by assessing the older adult’s functional status and reviewing the hazards in their environment that may put them at risk for falling.

Learn more helpful fall prevention tips for older adults from our infographic:  An OT Knows How to Help Seniors Age in Place.

 

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O-Tip of the Week: Shed Some Light on Fall Prevention

Our O-Tip of the week series we will be providing valuable “OT-Approved Life Hacks” to provide you with simple and helpful solutions for living. 

For the month of November, Fall Prevention Month, our O-Tip series will concentrate on preventing falls at home and in the community.

This week’s O-Tip of the Week focuses on a simple, yet often forgotten aspect of the home that can prevent falls:  proper lighting. 

Seniors need to be attuned to the physical, balance and vision changes they are experiencing as they age, and need to consider the importance of proper lighting to help them navigate and reduce the risk of falls in their living spaces.  Helpful and simple lighting suggestions may include:

–        Night lights around the home

–        A bed side lamp

–        Illuminated light switches

–        Storage of flashlights in the bedrooms, the kitchen and bathrooms

–        Change of light fixtures to provide both ambient and task lighting based on needs

An Occupational Therapist can assist in assessing the living space to suggest lighting modifications and more.  Learn more about how OT’s assist in fall reduction in our OT-V Episode, Fall Prevention.

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O-Tip of the Week: Hydrate to Prevent Falls

Our O-Tip of the week series we will be providing valuable “OT-Approved Life Hacks” to provide you with simple and helpful solutions for living. 

For the month of November, Fall Prevention Month, our O-Tip series will concentrate on preventing falls at home and in the community.

This week’s O-Tip of the Week focuses on a simple way to prevent dizziness and balance issues which can lead to falls:  hydration. 

Learn more about how to properly hydrate yourself in the following post from our blog Help with Hydration – How Many Glasses Do You Really Need?

Learn more helpful fall prevention tips from our infographic:  An OT Knows How to Prevent Falls: