It’s vital that part of your senior’s care plan includes solutions for fall prevention. Falls are a huge concern for older adults and there’s more that you can do to avoid a fall than you might think.
Get Your Senior’s Eyes Examined
One of the simplest things you can do to help your senior to possibly avoid a fall is to keep up with her eye health. If your elderly family member hasn’t had an eye exam recently, then it’s definitely time to schedule an appointment with her eye doctor. Poor vision can keep your elderly family member from seeing obstacles and therefore avoiding them.
Make Sure Your Senior’s Feet Are in Good Condition
It also matters that your senior’s feet are able to support her properly. If her feet aren’t in good condition, then walking might be difficult or even painful. You want to make sure that your elderly family member’s feet fit well into her shoes and that she doesn’t have any issues like ingrown toenails, fungal infections, or blisters that could cause her to have trouble walking safely.
Work with a Physical or Occupational Therapist
Spending some time helping your senior to learn new ways to move or how to use tools that can aid her mobility is really important in helping her to avoid a fall. Physical and occupational therapists may both be able to offer some assistance to your senior as she learns how to do that. These types of therapies help your senior to learn solutions that work specifically for her needs.
Start an Exercise Plan with Your Senior
If your elderly family member’s doctor agrees that she’s safe to do so, starting an exercise plan can do a lot to help her to avoid a fall. Exercising strengthens your senior’s muscles, builds her stamina, and helps her with both balance and flexibility. All of these factors add up to improved ability to avoid a fall.
Work with Someone Who Can Help You Spot Safety Issues
There’s a lot more to spotting safety issues, though. You may have a little bit of fall prevention blindness, even when you’re trying your hardest to see what might be a potential issue for your senior. Working with home care providers is a great way to revamp your fall prevention plan because they have experience helping seniors to avoid all sorts of issues, including falls.
This is going to be an ongoing project, too. There’s always something changing, whether that’s in your senior’s environment or in her abilities and all of that factors into preventing falls.
If you or an aging loved-one are considering home care in Centennial, CO, please contact the caring staff at SYNERGY HomeCare today. Call us at (303) 756-9322.
