Residing in an Assisted Living Community

When an elderly individual falls in his or her home, there can be a variety of factors that contribute. A cluttered home, for example, can increase the risk of tripping, while someone who is distracted can also trip and fall. However, there are a number of health conditions that can increase your risk of falling at home.

If you have one of these conditions and are concerned about falling, you may wish to hire a home health aide to visit you to help you around, as well as make suggestions on what devices—handrails, for example—to have installed to decrease the risk of falling.

Incontinence

People often equate incontinence with going to the bathroom in their pants, but this isn't always the case. Often, you'll have a sudden urge to urinate or move your bowels — and to avoid having an accident, you'll need to race across the house to the bathroom. For the elderly, this can be an issue. Running or walking briskly can potentially cause you to slip and fall, while scrambling to get out of a chair or off the couch could also have the same result.

Circulatory Diseases

Circulatory diseases can also threaten your safety when you're walking around your home. Something such as peripheral artery disease, for example, leaves you with lessened blood flow in your extremities. When this is the case, these areas might feel weak. The result may be that your lower body isn't strong enough to support you, especially if you were to trip and attempt to regain your balance. Health conditions that affect your nerves can also have a similar result. For example, if you have a nerve issue that affects your feet, you might struggle to step confidently, and this could lead to a fall.

Use of Medication

Prescription medication can also lead to a heightened risk of a fall. One of the common side effects of many prescription medications if that you might feel dizzy or otherwise lightheaded. This can mean that when you stand up to walk, you might potentially get dizzy and fall. Or, in more extreme cases, you might even pass out while you're standing, leading to a hard fall and a serious injury. You don't want a fall in your home to threaten your independence as you age. Hiring an in-home nursing care can go a long way toward reducing the risk of falling in your home.