Last year more than 1,100 people attended A&E’s around the region during the winter period after falling or slipping on the ice.
Falls are a critical issue, especially at this time of year. The total number of people attending at A&E last winter due to falls was nearly 10,000 – which is an increase of two per cent on the number of attendances reported in the summer of that year.
As the saying goes, accidents happen but there are steps you can do to prevent a slip, trip or fall including the following:
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icy pavements and roads can very slippery. Take extra care if you go out and wear boots or shoes with good grip on the soles;
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bear in mind that black ice on pavements or roads might not be clearly visible, and that compacted snow may turn to ice as the temperature drops;
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the Met Office advises putting grit on paths and driveways to lessen the risk of slipping and to wait until the roads have been gritted if you're travelling by car.
Older people are more at risk of seriously injuring themselves by falling - with one in three people in later life suffering from a fall each year. A regional has group has been established by NHS East Midlands with a dedicated role of reducing falls across the region through prevention and targeted NHS services, which are planned to be delivered by March 2011and continued from then.
The dedicated regional group plans to build on the work of individual NHS trusts to further improve services by:
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building falls prevention in to mainstream services;
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ensuring every health community has a falls prevention and fracture liaison service which investigates localised causes of falls and looks at types of approved treatment;
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targeting home assessments to help prevent falls from occurring;
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carrying out medication reviews to make sure the most appropriate support is provided on an individual basis.
Trusts in our region are also already working to encourage older people to improve their health and balance through exercise. Leicestershire County & Rutland Community Health Services are running a Falls Programme called Safe, Active and Independent for those patients who have had a fall and been identified at risk of falling again.
Dennis Garrat, who lives in Uppingham, Rutland, has just celebrated his 97th birthday and has attended the falls programme in Oakham. He suffered a series of falls mainly due to his poor eyesight, following the death of his wife 18 months ago. Dennis banged his head on a couple of occasions and the falls also knocked his confidence. The falls programme has equipped him with techniques to avoid falling again and improve his mobility generally. Dennis says his life has been transformed since he started the programme and that it not only reduced his risk of falling, improved his self-confidence and made him less fearful of going out but has improved his fitness which has helped his bowling technique.
Lorraine Wright, assistant director of programme planning for NHS East Midlands said: “Falls are a major cause of injury in the East Midlands during the winter period and the icy conditions can be especially dangerous for older people. If you are prone to falls, whether outside or inside the home, ask your local GP about falls prevention services in your area. Finally, if you do have to venture out in the bad weather make sure you are prepared and wear the correct footwear.”
