Kathy Newman is a 75-year-old woman who enjoys shopping. She likes to look fashionable, and she succeeds.

But a shopping trip to Butler Plaza in June to buy new clothes and accessories didn’t end up as she had hoped. She took a shortcut across the parking lot to go to another store.

“I fell on my face and broke both my hands. I went to rehab for three months,” Newman said. “I didn’t make it to the second store.”

Newman is not alone in taking a fall. September is National Fall Prevention Awareness Month, and we all need to take note. Injuries resulting from falls send many seniors to hospitals with broken bones, concussions, and even traumatic brain injuries.

Both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Florida Department of Health report falls as the leading cause of injury and death for adults aged 65 and older. Nationwide, more than 38,000 adults in that age group died because of a fall in 2021, the last year for which data is available. In Florida, that number was 3,848 older adults.

That same year, emergency departments across the United States recorded

nearly 3 million visits for older adult who experienced falls.

Many organizations are working to help mature adults keep both feet on the ground. Local groups offer classes and workshops to help older people improve their balance and develop the physical and mental stamina that might keep them from falling.

“Falls are common, and falls are costly,” said Katina Mustipher, CEO of Elder Options, a local nonprofit that provides assistance and resources to seniors. She said each year direct medical costs related to falls exceed $50 billion—and Medicare and Medicaid foot the bill for 78% of those costs.

“It is part of why we offer free evidence-based classes, Tai Chi and A Matter of Balance,” Mustipher said. “We want our community safe, strong, and mentally prepared.”

At the Senior Recreation Center in Gainesville, Eldercare offers an eight-week balance class that begins Sept. 18. Jodie Lindsey-Benware, the adult trauma injury prevention and outreach coordinator with UF Health, will facilitate the class.

“It’s not an exercise class,” Lindsey-Benware said. “It’s a cognitive process aimed at changing your thinking about falls. Just because you’re older doesn’t mean you are supposed to fall all the time.”

Lindsey-Benware, who is also captain of the mobile integrated health team for Alachua County Fire Rescue, said the whole idea she tries to promote is doing what’s healthy.

“As long as we take care of our bodies, stay fit, work out (to one’s capacity) eat right, and keep up with our doctor’s appointments, that’s what counts,” she said. “As long as you are doing these things, it doesn’t mean you are prone to fall because of your age.”

Christina M. Ramos, executive director of Touching Hearts at Home, a home healthcare agency, said she could “talk all day” about fall risks and how to reduce them.

“Our certified nursing assistants and home health aides are experienced and trained to educate clients and their families about fall prevention techniques, such as using proper footwear, being aware of surroundings, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle and routine,” she said.

Touching Hearts was named the best home healthcare agency in the state by Guide to Florida for 2024.

“We also realize, more often than not, the fear of falling can be greater than an actual danger or threat, so we aim to help our clients to be proactive to reduce falls and minimize the fear, which can sometimes be crippling,” Ramos said.

The fear of falling also comes up often at healthcare institutions that provide services to seniors.

Ronald I. Shorr, director of the Geriatric Research Education & Clinical Center (GRECC) at Malcom Randall VAMC Center, heads a team studying fall prevention in hospitals and rehabilitation facilities.

“I am interested in falls that occur during patient care, specifically during hospitalization, which not only becomes a geriatric issue but a patient safety issue,” Shorr said.

Shorr, a research professor in the department of epidemiology at the University of Florida, believes that as much as falls are a problem, “institutions are so afraid of having these events and possibly getting sued because of them that they do things that are not best for patient care.”

Shorr and his team are studying the use of alarms, auditory restraints, and chemical restraints that may keep people from falling but also limit their autonomy and independence.

“I’m not sure we can prevent falls. We have not found that magic bullet,” Shorr said. “But I think the future is to try and successfully deal with the fear of falling so that this doesn’t interfere with people’s lives and, as an extension, doesn’t interfere with the care of patients in hospitals.”

Shorr said the goal is living with a sense of normalcy: “The fear of falling should be the target and not fall prevention itself. It’s going out and living your life.”

That’s what the Pinellas County-based SAGES theater group seeks to get its audiences to do. The mission of SAGES (Senior Actors Guild & Education Services) is to present “plays with purpose” as an “engaging and educational tool for raising awareness on issues older adults face.” It also seeks to empower people to positive action by mixing comedy and drama.

SAGES plays are “for older adults about things that matter,” according to Christine Hamacher, SAGES co-founder and artistic and executive director.

Hamacher said SAGES is currently presenting “Denying Gravity,” its signature play, “about Claire, a feisty, independent retiree who takes a spill and breaks her arm and doesn’t want help from anyone.” The lead actor, Letty Mendoza, is 84 years old.

“We wanted to engage and educate and empower older adults to prevent falls, Hamacher said. “Theater has a power behind it that ignites the memory and allows people to experience something on stage, not in real life, and still carry that memory and learn from it and make decisions for their benefit.”

Although SAGES’s focus is on Pinellas County, it has theater kits at the ready, so its plays can be presented anywhere by community organizations or other theater groups who want to reach out to older people.

The Florida Council on Aging (FCOA) recently offered a virtual education session on preventing falls at home with Senior Proof, a company whose focus is to help seniors age in place. They provided tips on making homes safer and more livable for older adults, with suggestions that can help those even with limited incomes—such as grab bars in the shower or bath, building small ramps, or removing rugs that are a slip hazard from floors.

FCOA offered the session to give information about “the tools to do a home safety evaluation … and show you effective ways to prevent falls. By being proactive instead of reactive to falls, you’ll learn how to help your family, friends, and clients age safely and confidently in their own homes,” said Emily Colquitt, FCOA’s logistics and marketing coordinator.

After her fall while shopping, Newman is making her home safer. Her son-in-law built a small ramp over a step into her living room, where she had fallen in the past. But she’s still feeling nervous.

“I’ve learned to slow down and pay more attention to my actions,” Newman said. “I’m just being careful and not moving too fast.”

Editor’s note: This is the latest story in Mainstreet’s ongoing Aging Matters series. It was independently reported by Ronnie Lovler and underwritten by Elder Options.