Joe Lieberman’s Death Highlights At Home Fall Risks For Older Adults

Joe Lieberman led an uncommon life. The breaking news on this site Wednesday shared that the 82-year-old former Democratic vice presidential nominee and longtime senator from Connecticut died due to complications from a fall, according to his family. His cause of death, however, was all too common for people his age.

Deadly Risk

According to the CDC, falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries for older adults. “Falls among adults aged 65 and older are common, costly, and preventable,” (emphasis mine), its website reports. Most of those falls occur at home, according to the National Institutes of Health.

If you’re 65 or older, or you’re caring for someone who is, there are steps you can take to make home spaces safer and reduce fall risks. There’s no absolute guarantee, of course, but making changes that can help yourself or a loved one lower the chance of a painful or deadly fall is worth considering.

Using data from emergency room visits, NIH ranked the spaces where the greatest number of home falls occur for 65 and older adults, (noting that they differ by age and sex). Other areas only hit single digits.

• Bedrooms (25% Overall)
• Stairs (22.9% Overall)
• Bathrooms (22.7% Overall).

Fall Prevention Resources

Sarah L. Szanton, dean of Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, noted that “Men are slightly more likely to fall outside of the home, and women are more likely to fall inside the home.” (Outside spaces can include yard, deck and walkway.) Effective strategies to reduce the risk for both sexes include physical training as well as home environment changes, she noted, citing as examples, “Doing strength and balance exercises, as well as putting a railing on each side of the stairs or nonslip pads in the shower.”

I reached out to a range of professionals involved in helping older adults age safely at home for their insights. Their advice, all shared in emails (and one certified designer Facebook group) this week, can potentially help you or your loved ones. (If income is a challenge, there are programs like CAPABLE, developed by Szanton, that can assist.)

Occupational therapist Sydney Marshman specializes in helping older adults age in place and recommended, “Fall prevention strategies that simultaneously address multiple risks including medications, physical fitness, environmental modifications, and routine wellness screenings. In my opinion, this truly demonstrates the importance of professionals working in tandem to prevent falls.” Involving an OT can be extremely helpful in tailoring environmental modifications to personalized needs with an eye toward both short and long-term needs.

Ryan Herd, founder and CEO of Caregiver Smart Solutions, addresses aging in place with smart home technology. (He was inspired to start his firm after his own father was diagnosed with cancer.) CSS’s sensors alert a designated family caregiver to potential issues and in-home accidents. Their preventive analytic capabilities can point to an older relative’s upcoming fall risks, he explained. “Sensors are placed around the home to monitor movements and activities, identifying unusual patterns that could indicate a fall or the risk of falling.”

Whole House Approaches

Fall prevention has numerous low tech components too. “Regularly check the home for trip hazards like loose rugs, carpet runners, clutter, and electrical cords,” advised Herd. He also recommended the use of nonslip mats in kitchens and baths, where wet floors can be hazardous.

Herd also pointed to the advantages of automated lighting, “especially in risk areas like stairs, hallways, and bathrooms,” to significantly reduce the risk of falls. A 2022 study conducted in care settings found that circadian lighting reduced falls by more than 30%. This technology is designed to automate light from dawn to dusk to simulate daylight changes.

Reducing Bedroom Fall Risks

Architect Doug Walter helped create and update the Certified Aging in Place designation offered to a range of professionals through the National Association of Home Builders. His advice for preventing bedroom falls included eliminating throw rugs, (which are common trip hazards), as well as maximizing lighting and minimizing glare, finishing surfaces in contrasting colors, making sure floors are level and minimizing entry thresholds. (Smooth flooring like wood or cork are ideal, he pointed out.) “Chair rails that can help steady the unsteady” are also helpful, the architect added.

Reducing Stairway Fall Risks

Walters recommended maximizing lighting and daylighting in these spaces. He also advised the use of contrasting colors (for example, contrasting stair risers and treads, walls and handrails), along with ramped or zero step entries.

The architect also emphasized the need for “Gentler stairs! We replace many overly steep stairs in our remodels,” he shared. He further noted the need for handrails on both sides of a staircase, whereas many builders only include them on one side. (Dual rails especially help when someone is holding something going up or down.)

Reducing Bathroom Fall Risks

Walter’s advice for preventing bathroom falls included non-slip tile, assist bars (both horizontal and vertical) in and around showers, plus assist bars that double as towel bars. “If someone is slipping, they’re grabbing anything they can!” he declared. (Standard towel bars won’t prevent a fall; specialized models designated for this purpose can.) There are also assist bars that double as toilet paper holders, he noted. Walter also recommends niches and ledges that can serve as holds to steady oneself, good lighting, shower benches and handheld shower heads.

“Most people forget a vertical grab bar is needed at the shower entrance – critical to prevent falls as one is transferring into the shower,” commented aging in place-focused interior designer Susan Benedict. “Knowing whether the client is right or left handed is important too,” she added.

Another helpful tip Benedict suggested is to provide a heat source in the bathroom so that older users don’t suffer adverse effects that could lead to falling while waiting for a shower to heat up or a walk-in tub to drain. (These are the details that distinguish an aging in place specialist from a consultant without that experience and knowledge.)

Conclusions

“The number of Americans ages 65 and older will more than double over the next 40 years, reaching 80 million in 2040,” reported the Urban Institute. This points to an urgent need for homes suitable for this older population. That need is not yet being met.

“Fewer than 4% of US homes offered the three key features of accessible housing—single-floor living, no-step entries, and wide hallways and doorways — at last measure,” according to a December 2023 Massachusetts Healthy Aging Collaborative release. Professionals in this realm, including those cited in this article, are seeing increased demand for their aging in place expertise. We need more of them!