Pauline held on to a plastic bag with one hand while holding tight to her walker, precariously trying to navigate down three concrete steps , her left foot in a soft shoe cast, trying not to fall. This was a process she was going to repeat three times as she was taking her trash to the curb. Pauline is one of the many senior citizens who lives by herself and has difficulty walking. Simple tasks become monumental. If she fell there would be no one around to help her.
Falls are the number two causes of accidental death in this nation behind motor vehicle crashes. Last week the Bar Harbor Library in conjunction with Winthrop University Hospital presented a Fall Prevention Program. The second part of this excellent program will take place on Wednesday Sept. 21 which will focus on balance and strength training exercises.
The informative presentation was conducted by Grace Rowan, RN, the community outreach educator. According to Rowan, “Winthrop University was committed to giving the mature population a program to prevent falls because we saw such an increase in the rate of falls in people over the age of 65. We put out a plan to educate people as much as possible, to increase their knowledge base and give them some tips to increase their sense of balance and the help them prevent falls in the future.”
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The course reviewed some great tips for fall prevention such as getting your eyes and ears checked yearly because hearing and vision is important in proper balance. As we age our depth perception can change, macular degeneration can set in along with cataracts which impede good vision. The hairs in your ears, known as cilia which aid in balance can dry out causing you to become dizzy. Medications can also contribute to dizziness and imbalance, especially if you are on multiple medications.
Rowan stressed the importance of removing obstacles from your house such as scatter rugs, electrical cords you can trip on and advises night lights so you don’t stumble over the family pet on the way to the bathroom. She advised wearing non skid shoes and taking a phone with you into a bathroom or going down to a basement. She recommends wearing an alarm device to call for help if you do fall. She stressed the importance of keeping things within easy reach and advised not getting on a ladder or foot stool.
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Rowan also distributed helpful literature to the packed classroom on keeping your medications listed on a wallet card in case you have to go to the emergency room.
The biggest problem Rowan has noticed concerning falls is “retraining our balance. Many people feel they are older so they sit more. You’ve got to move or you are going to be in trouble. You don’t have to jog or do jumping jacks but you need to do things that will improve your balance, simple exercises that will help.”
Those exercises on balance for seniors will be taught Sept.21 at the Bar Harbor Library at 2 pm. For this free class registration call 516 798 4607 ext 304 to sign up.
