As we age, falling becomes more common and more threatening.  A careful walk-thru your home looking for obstacles and hazards can help prevent a serious accident.  Use the following information to make good informed decisions to ensure safety and prevent falls of your loved ones.  We all want to protect our family members as they age and help them stay safe, secure and independent.  Knowing how to protect older adults from fallas (leading cause of injury) is a step forward.

​When we were younger, we all used to laugh at the "Help! I've fallen and I can't get up!" commercials for emergency monitoring equipment for older adjusts.  But now as we  get a little older, those commercials don't seem quite so funny anymore.  Falling is a real threat and can cause serious injuries.

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), one out of three adults 65 and older falls each year and falls are the leading cause of injury and/or death.  They also are the most common cause of non-fatal injuries and hospital admissions for trauma.  More than 19,700 older adults died from unintentional fall injuries in 2008.  Just three years ago, 2.2 million non-fatal fall injuries among older adults were treated in emergency rooms and more than 581,000 of those patents were hospitalized. Falls and injuries such as hip fractures and (TBI) can be a serious threat to seniors health and independence.  Thankfully, falls are not an inevitable part of aging.  In fact, many falls can be prevented.  We all can play key-role in protecting the older adults we care about.

One of the easiest ways to help prevent falls is to do a simple home safety inspection to look for potential hazards and remove obstacles.  Use this checklist to help make your home safer.

*  Bathroom. The bathroom may be the smallest room in the house, but it has the greatest potential for trouble.  Bathroom rugs, wet floors, showers with lips, tubs with high walls -- each of these items could cause a fall in an instant.  If rugs are necessary to prevent wet floors, make sure they're non-skid rugs.  If possible, meet with a remodeling contractor like my self to discuss alternatives with shower safe, walk-in tubs as an option for increased safety.  Ensure that clothes baskets and laundry are kept somewhere other than the middle of the floor.  Other items that can serve helpful, remove soap build-up in tub or shower on a regular basis.  Place non-strips in bath/shower.  Install adjustable height shower heads.  Mount grab bars at the toilet, bath and shower on walls with secure reinforcements, to prevent the bars from coming loose.

*  Kitchen.  In the kitchen, non-skid rugs are a must if rugs are needed at all.  If there are pots and pans or other items you use frequently such as dishes and food items, make sure they are stored at eye level or lower to prevent the need for over-reaching or step-stools.

*  Entryway.  As you walk in the front door is there a welcome mat?  A small table to drop keys and mail? A huge ficus tree?  If so this area might need some de-cluttering to ensure safety and prevent falls as your parents are walking in and out of their home.

*  Stairways.  Make sure all handrails are not broken and are securely fastened.  Both sides of the stops should have handrails.  

* Doorways.  Check all doorways in the house.  If using a cane, walker or wheelchair, is it easy to maneuver through the doorways with these items?  Do the doors tay open and out of the way on their own?  Do locks need to be removed on interior doors so that no one gets tuck in a particular room?  Are all doorknobs and handles working properly and easily.

* Lighting.  Place nightlights in hallways, bedrooms, bathrooms and stairways.  Install light switches at the top and bottom of stairs.  Place a lamp (or telephone) by your bed.  Keep lighting uniform in each room and add lighting to dark spaces.

*  Area Rugs.  Do you see a theme here?  If there are area rugs in the house that you haven't already made not of yet -- maybe in `e dining room or living room - now is the time.  Although they make a beautiful decorative element to these rooms, standing up from the couch and getting a single toe caught under the edge of an area rug could cause a fall .  Consider removing any rugs that are used solely for decorative purposes.

* Fire Safety.  I see quite often, certainly much more than I would like, poor mobility and access for escape in fire hazard situations.  If you have one or more elderly parents or patients, please make sure that there are preventive measures taken place to be able to evacuate the elderly on their own.  In regards to the older 3-4 bedroom homes which have at most a slider window in the bedrooms for fire safety. Think about installing an exit/patio door to the outside of their primary bedroom to a patio. Handicap door thresholds are available for new doors or as retrofits to existing doors to allow easy mobility through the door opening in a wheelchair or mobile scooter.

* Outside of your home.  Repair holes, uneven joints in driveways and walkways.  Arrange to have leaves, snow and ice removed from stairs and walkways.  Use salt or sand throughout the winter months. Make sure outside lighting is working in entryways and other walk areas.  Check that handrails are not broken and are securely fastened.  Both sides of the steps should have handrails.

*  Floor Lamps.  A well lighted home is a must if the to goal is to ensure safety and prevent falls, but if floor lamps are used through the house, make sure the electrical cords are out of place as to not create an obstacle.

*  Wires & Cords.  While you are thinking about the floor lamp cords, look around for others too. Televisions, electric blankets, table lamps, the iron, the computer, even your favorite recliner with heat and massage built in - all of these thing need to be plugged in and all these cords present lots of opportunities to trip and fall.  Considering bundling the cords as much as possible or moving these items to a different area to hide the cords and prevent accidents.

We all want to maintain our freedom and independence by living at home, and we want to be safe.  Taking the time to inspect homes for common safety hazards can be a great step in that direction.

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