Information for Service Providers

Balance And Mobility

Video

• Video Assesments
  • FAB Scale
  • Berg Balance Scale
  • Multidirectional Reach Test

Tools You Can Use

• A Tool Kit To Prevent Senior Falls: Fact sheets, graphs, and brochures about falls and fall prevention for older adults designed for fall prevention programs.
• Balance Assessment Handbook: This tool helps assess balance and should be used in conjunction with the Balance Assessment Video. (PDF)
• Best Practices in Physical Activity: Outlines the importance of physical activity in fall prevention. (PDF)
• Designing Safe and Effective Physical Activity: Provides a brief overview of the health benefits of physical activity, best practics in programming, and guidelines and recommendations regarding physical activity for older adults developed by a coalition of national organizations led by the American College of Sports Medicine. (PDF)
• Recruiting and Retaining Effective Instructors for Physical Activity Programs: This brief focuses on the challenge of recruiting and retaining qualified physical activity instructors for older adults. (PDF)
• Remembering WhenTM: Fire and Fall Prevention for Older Adults(Spanish Version) : Powerpoint presentation with photos and artwork detailing and illustrating step to prevent falls in the home. (PPT)
• U.S. Fall Prevention Programs for Seniors: A comprehensive PDF about fall prevention programs for seniors from the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
• “What Will One of Every Three Seniors Suffer This Year?: Fact about falls in older persons and an online directory of senior care pharmacists across the U.S. and Canada. (PDF).

Websites

• Fall Prevention Center of Excellence: Started in September 2004, this foundation launched a statewide Fall Prevention Initiative in the state of California to help with risk assessment, exercise and enviornmental modications for fall prevention.
• National Resource Center for Safe Aging: This website contains a wealth of falls-related information for public health professionals, with links to many other useful sites.

Articles

• A Best Practices Guide for the Prevention of Falls Among Seniors Living in the Community: Results of study to review fall prevention programs and practices resulting in evidence for effective approaches for reducing injury among seniors, as well as efficient means of delivering prevention programs.
• Fall Reduction Initiative: Establishing New Directions for Safety (FRIENDS): The goal of this paper is to assist in identifying fall risk factors among older adults and to increase public awareness of measures that can help to prevent falls. (PDF).
• Falls and Hip Fractures Among Older Adults: List of facts and figures from the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control about falls and hip fractures.
• Falls In The Elderly: Analysis on determining and treating the underlying cause of falls.
• Pharmacist Intervention Can Prevent Falls: This article suggests options for pharmarcy services to help decrease the risk of falls associated with specific medications, medication combinations and more.
• Preventing Falls: Which Intervention Is Most Effective? Outlines several interventions that have successfully reduced the incidence of falls among elderly people living at home.
• Promising Pathways: Falls Prevention Programs for Older Canadians Living in the Community: Handbook designed for professionals and others who work with seniors and veterans in the community and is based on a comprehensive review of falls prevention programs around the world.
• Research Review Papers: Review includes risk factors and prevention strategies, role of excerise in reducing falls, role of medication modification in fall prevention and the role of environment at home and the community in fall prevention. (PDF).

Other

• Balance and Mobility Specialist Instructor Certificate: This program is designed to provide physical activity instructors and health care professionals with the knowledge and practical skills necessary to develop and implement fall risk reduction programs in their communities.
• Fall Prevention and Management Aid: This aid is intended to prompt clinical staff to consider a systematic assessment for determining patients' risk for falling and to recommend interventions. (DOC).
• Fear of Falling: It’s A Matter of Balance: This video includes interviews w ith a group of elders on common thoughts and fears about physical activity that lead to inactivity. The seniors discuss challenges they faced in recovering and maintaining their functional independence.
• Tai Chi: A New Look At An Old Exercise: Find out more about Tai chi, which is most popular with older adults who seek low impact exercise. Exercise is a key element in fall prevention.