Daniel Teague, a second year doctoral student in the School of Occupational Therapy, provides information at the Fall Awareness and Prevention event.

Every 15 seconds, an older adult is seen in an emergency department for a fall-related injury.  Nationally, falls are the leading cause of both fatal and nonfatal injuries for those aged 65 and over, and the chances of falling and being seriously injured in a fall increase with age. 

In light of these findings by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), faculty and students from the Gordon E. Inman College of Health Sciences & Nursing lent their expertise to the public last week at a Fall Awareness and Prevention event hosted by Williamson County Parks and Recreation.   Health professionals from each discipline in the College were on hand to assist seniors with strategies to keep active and falls free:  ideas about effective home modifications and the use of assistive devices from the School of Occupational Therapy, counsel on the proper use of medications from the School of Nursing, information on community resources from the Social Work Department, and suggestions on shoe wear and exercises to increase flexibility, mobility and strength from the School of Physical Therapy.

“This was a great opportunity for our college’s faculty and students to work together in serving the seniors in our local community with ideas for preventing falls”, said Dr. Debra Gibbs, Assistant Professor of Occupational Therapy, who coordinated Belmont’s participation in the event.