When you own a home care business, fall prevention is a big part of your professional life. Elderly adults suffer falls more frequently than younger adults, and worse yet, they are more likely to suffer a life-threatening injury as the result of a fall. Homecare providers are often tasked with reducing seniors’ risk of falls, or with caring for elderly adults whose quality of life has declined after a fall-related injury.

At Visiting Angels^®, we know how much of a risk falls pose to elderly Americans. We also know how effective a home care business can be at reducing this risk. To do so, however, home care providers need information, training, and resources that directly address fall prevention.

How Your Home Care Business Can Prevent Falls

If you’re trying to prevent falls among seniors, you won’t be able to apply a one-size-fits-all solution. There’s a variety of reasons why elderly adults are at increased risk of falls, and every senior has his or her own unique risk factors that need to be managed. To prevent falls, seniors need personalized solutions — not cookie cutter programs.

Some of the various ways that seniors, their loved ones, and home care businesses can reduce the risk of falls for elderly adults include:

Home modifications that eliminate or mitigate fall hazards
Lifestyle changes that improve balance, reflexes, and physical strength
Ensuring seniors have adequate vision care
Taking special care with medications that increase the risk of falls
Providing mobility aids, such as a cane or a walker
Assisting seniors with tasks and activities that could put them at risk of falling
Monitoring seniors for signs of poor balance or proximity to fall hazards

As a home care business owner, you can approach fall prevention in any number of ways. Some agencies take a comprehensive approach to fall prevention, offering a combination of services. Others focus on care-related aspects of fall prevention, while pointing families in the direction of other important resources on the subject.

Safe & Steady Fall Prevention Program by Visiting Angels

Fall prevention has been an area of focus for Visiting Angels for as long as we’ve been in business. It’s important to us that seniors have the resources they need to mitigate the risk of falls and fall-related injuries. For that to happen, home care business owners need to have these resources available for seniors and their families.

This is the impetus behind our Safe & Steady Fall Prevention Program. Through this program, we provide families with detailed educational resources. These resources include information about the risk that falls pose to elderly adults, lifestyle changes that seniors can make to mitigate the risk of a serious fall, as well as a home safety checklist to make the home a less hazardous place.

Our Safe & Steady Fall Prevention Program has helped Visiting Angels stand out from other home care businesses. American seniors and their loved ones are increasingly aware of the risks that falls pose, and a fall prevention program can influence which home care business they choose to provide care.

Thinking of starting your own home care business? Call us at 800-365-4189 or request information online to learn more about our current opportunities for purchasing a Visiting Angels franchise.