Falls Prevention Week promotes senior safety

        One out of every four adults age 65 and older falls every year. Those falls account for more than 850,000 hospitalizations and more than 29,000 deaths annually. These figures from the National Council on Aging (NCA) are why the NCA and Great Lakes Community Action Partnership (GLCAP) recognizes Sept. 21-25 as Falls Prevention Week.
        Eliminating trip and fall hazards in senior homes is one of the goals of GLCAP’s Senior Helping Hands program. The program provides eligible Sandusky County seniors with health and safety-related home repairs that include installing handrails and grab bars, repairing ramps, improving handicap toilet access and other services.
        “We should all be able to feel safe in our homes. Unfortunately, some areas of the home may be ‘accidents waiting to happen,’” GLCAP Chore Specialist Bryan Adams said. “One of our goals with the Senior Helping Hands program is to find and fix these problem areas so that we can prevent a dangerous and potentially life-threatening fall from ever happening.”
        The Senior Helping Hands program is available at no cost for eligible Sandusky County seniors age 60 or older who are at or below 200 percent of federal poverty guidelines (e.g. $2,127 per month/household of one; $2,873 per month/household of two). For seniors over 200 percent of federal poverty guidelines, Senior Helping Homes is available on a sliding fee scale according to income.
        For more information on Senior Helping Hands, visit www.glcap.org/seniorhelpinghands or call 419-332-8499.