< Back to Previous Page Falls and Injury Prevention For People Over 65 For people over 65, injuries are leading causes of death. In fact, the number of fall-related deaths and the death rate from falls to Floridians 65 years of age and older increased every year for the 5-year period 1996-2000. Of the 43,000 elder Floridians hospitalized due to injury during 1999, nearly one-half were for hip fractures, principally due to falls. More than one-half of the 3,400 hospitalizations for traumatic head or spinal cord injury sustained by elder Floridians were due to falls. The impact of these hospitalizations on elders is profound. Total hospital charges for 1999 injury-related hospitalizations were almost $900 million, with Medicare responsible for $500 million. In addition, two-thirds of those elders who required hospitalization were discharged from the hospital to some other institution. Many falls are preventable. However, awareness and education efforts center on home environments to eliminate hazards. Loose throw rugs, clutter, objects in major pathways, and pets are all common contributors to falls. Educating elder consumers about the risks of falls can motivate them to modify home environments to make them safer. People 65 years of age and older are twice as likely to be killed or injured in fires. The risk for fire-related injuries increases with age- at 75 years of age the risk increases to three times and at 85 years to four times that of other age groups. What is FLIPS? Florida Injury Prevention Program for Seniors (FLIPS) is an education and awareness initiative that focuses on preventing injuries from falls and fires. The Program is an interdepartmental cooperative effort among the departments of Elder Affairs, Health, Financial Services (Fire Marshal's Office) and also includes universities, the Florida Student Nurses Association, hospitals, county health departments, and many other local agencies and organizations. Through conducting training workshops throughout the state and disseminating injury prevention information to agencies that serve Florida elders, this program is actively engaging in cost-avoidance activities that are designed to reduce the burden on Florida relative to the need for public assistance. FLIPS Clearinghouse The FLIPS clearinghouse provides injury prevention educational materials for agencies serving Florida seniors, families, friends and caregivers. Falls and other injury causing events can be averted with simple improvements to the home. Often, we do not see the danger of cluttered floors, the use of low wattage light bulbs, failure to wipe liquids off the floor or that taking the wrong medicine at the wrong time can result in severe injuries to Florida's older residents and visitors. Injury prevention materials available through the FLIPS Clearinghouse on falls prevention, fire prevention and medication safety can help us provide a safer environment for our seniors. The clearinghouse also provides resources for case managers, social workers, home health care nurses and other individuals who deliver care to homebound seniors. FLIPS Brochures include: "What Is FLIPS?" "Afraid of Falling Down? Try Tai Chi" "Medication & Poison for Elders" "Can Eating Right, Prevent Falls" And FLIPS does more... Fire Safety In conjunction with the Department of Insurance, Division of the Fire Marshal, FLIPS provides free smoke detectors when available, to Florida's needy seniors. ... and we're still growing... DID YOU KNOW? For people over 65, injuries are a leading cause of death. Falls kill 10,000 seniors each year in the United States. Fear of falling can cause falls. Nutrition and exercise are vitally important to balance and to reduce falls. Osteoporosis is one of the main causes of falls and broken bones. In 1998, 27 percent of deaths by fire were to persons age 70 and over. Over 30,000 senior Floridians are hospitalized annually for falls. Falls are the most common cause of injuries & hospital admissions for trauma among the elderly. Half of all elderly adults hospitalized for hip fracture cannot return home or live independently after the fracture.