Avoiding falls this winter to save a trip to hospital

Age Scotland, the national charity for older people, has issued advice on how to avoid falling this winter to prevent a trip to the hospital.

Anyone can fall at any age, but people are more vulnerable to slips and trips as they grow older. One in three people over the age of 65 experience a fall at least once a year and more than 18,000 older people are admitted to hospitals in Scotland each year after a fall.

This winter the issue could be more acute for older people who are struggling to heat their homes during the cost of living crisis as research suggests that cold indoor environments reduce muscle strength and put older people at greater risk of falling.

The charity says that this winter, when we know that health and social care availability will be stretched and cold homes could affect mobility and put older people at greater risk of falling, it’s more important than ever that older people are extra careful to avoid falls, especially in bad weather.

Age Scotland has put together two helpful advice guides offering tips to reduce the risk of falls and help people stay on their feet.

Keeping Your Feet in Later Life is aimed at helping older people stay confident and steady on their feet and its partner guide, Worried About Trips, Slips and Tumbles is for older people who have recently experienced a fall and includes support available from health services.

Michelle Supple, interim chief executive at Age Scotland, said:

“Falls are not an inevitable part of ageing but we know that slips and trips become more common in later life and they can have an extremely debilitating impact on a person’s long-term health and confidence.

“The knock-on effect of the Covid pandemic and prolonged lockdowns also led to considerable deconditioning among many older people who experienced a loss of mobility, strength and flexibility after spending weeks and months at home with limited physical activity.

“Our Big Survey of Scottish over 50s in 2021 found that two thirds – 64% - of respondents said they were less active due to Covid restrictions. Deconditioning would certainly make some older people more susceptible to falls.

“This kind of deconditioning will also occur in older people during lengthy stays in hospital. We know that delayed discharge figures are now as high as they were pre-pandemic, largely due to the lack of suitable community care which would allow older patients to go home sooner. As a result, significant numbers of older people have mobility challenges by the time they are eventually allowed home, which again puts them at greater risk of falling.

“This winter, when we know that health and social care availability will be stretched, it’s more important than ever that older people are extra careful when they are out and about, particularly during bad weather.

“There are plenty of tips about avoiding falls in our guides, ‘Keeping Your Feet in Later Life’ and ‘Worried About Trips, Slips and Tumbles’ which addresses ways in which older people can reduce their risk of falls by looking after their balance, strength and flexibility. They are available for free on our website or by calling Age Scotland’s helpline on 0800 12 44 222.”