Much like the human body, senior communities and care facilities are most effective when all moving parts are communicating and networked. While each individual department has their specific role for serving aging adults, they also have a responsibility to look for and respond to signs of health risks. Fall risk is a prevalent issue among aging adults and one that will take a village to reverse. Thinking about your involvement with the aging community, how is your department and organization joining the fight against falls?

Senior community organizers have direct access to aging adults to connect them to resources regarding falls. Is your senior community discussing fall risks? Are your seniors aware of warning signs and how to address them? Are you connecting them with agencies, resources and programs that can help them prevent falls? Therapy, fitness, health professionals, and nutrition are all areas that seniors can connect with to discuss and actively prevent potentially life-altering falls. Older adults who are educated, active, vigilant, and well connected to resources are significantly more prepared to reduce falls.

Rehabilitation and physical therapy roles are on the front lines, with direct patient contact to address fall risk. These areas have the opportunity to provide fall risk screenings and treat the risks directly. Are your seniors’ rehabilitation services testing them for vestibular deficiencies? Are they connected with a vestibular therapist? Is their therapy plan addressing fall risks? These are questions we should be asking on behalf of our seniors to ensure they are being screened and properly treated for fall risk. UprightVR is a virtual fall-risk assessment tool that screens for 8 underlying fall risks and can provide a clinician with the causes of a person’s moderate, or high fall risk. Clinicians can use this information to guide treatment to reduce fall risk. Our mission with UprightVR is to make fall risk screening readily available to ensure the aging community is being tested, treated, and ultimately saved from the dangers of falls.

Whether your facility is directly involved in health care or works alongside health professionals, communication is essential to preventing senior falls. Are health professionals providing notes for caregivers or loved ones and are those notes being discussed? Is fall risk screened for and discussed in regards to a patient’s unique health concerns? Are caregivers informed of medication side effects? Are vision and neurological check-ups encouraged? Fall risk is connected to so many aspects of an individual’s health. When physician offices screen with UprightVR, they can generate an active prevention plan against falls that can be discussed and implemented with all involved in an individual’s care.

Fitness facilities and exercise programs have the opportunity to offer education on strength and balance to prevent falls. Is fall risk discussed at your fitness facility? Is your fitness program offering classes targeted at fall prevention such as tai chi or yoga? Do you have an accessible and engaging overall wellness program featuring lifestyle habits that reduce fall risk? Do clients have the opportunity to demonstrate and discuss their weak areas and concerns regarding daily function? Are practical at-home exercises demonstrated for daily strengthening? Do you offer diagnostic tools to monitor the residents’ or patients’ health and wellbeing? With the technology of UprightVR, fitness facilities and personal trainers can assess the fall risks of their clients and design programs that will directly impact their abilities to reduce their fall risk.

Those involved in nutrition services for the aging community have a responsibility to ensure that aging adults are receiving the nutrients essential to their body for strength and cognition. Is the menu serving fresh, healthy foods that will benefit the bodies of aging adults? Is balanced nutrition discussed? Is their education or resources provided on supplements? Eating healthy and addressing deficiencies is an essential component of health for people of all ages, but it is instrumental in the fight against falls for seniors. Every department involving senior care can inquire about and address nutrition.

Environmental and maintenance services are also key in preventing senior falls. Is someone at your facility dedicated to upholding safety standards of the grounds? Does everyone at your facility know where to report when surfaces are uneven or grab bars are loose? Are rooms arranged in a way to reduce fall risk? Providing opportunities for workers to report issues or address obstacles can make your facility safer and reduce fall risks.

Fighting falls for the aging community will take more than programs, intervention, therapies, etc.; it takes whole community involvement with each department or area of expertise placing fall reduction as top priority. Each area of senior care must be vigilant, inquisitive, and communicative. We must look at fall risk holistically from physical, to nutritional, to environmental. Consider leveraging partnerships with vendors or agencies to strengthen your current fall risk options. UprightVR is working to make fall risk assessment accessible and standardized for aging adults to provide the information necessary for community intervention. We must each take responsibility in our areas and work with those adjacent to our fields to reduce this health concern for the aging community.