April Falls at Montefiore

April is Falls Awareness month, where Montefiore’s Physiotherapy team, in collaboration with the Allied Health team, aim to raise the awareness about the risks and prevention of falls. This year’s theme is ‘Falls Prevention is Everyone’s Business.’ This month is an important time to focus on supporting residents in their strength, balance, and knowledge around preventing falls.

Angel, Exercise Physiologist, shares the goals of April Falls at Montefiore:

Reducing Injuries: Falls can lead to serious injuries, such as fractures, head trauma, and even death. Awareness initiatives help residents, staff, and family members to recognise risks and take preventive steps.

Promoting Education: The month encourages communities to learn about fall prevention strategies, like improving room safety, increasing physical activity to improve strength and balance, and ensuring proper medical care.

Addressing Risk Factors: Factors like medication side effects, poor vision, hearing impairment and muscle weakness contribute to fall risk. Awareness months bring attention to these underlying causes so that individuals can take action, such as regular check-ups.

Support for staff and family members: By spreading awareness, staff and caregivers are better equipped with knowledge and tools to support our residents in reducing fall risks.

Residents across Hunters Hill, Woollahra, and Randwick, participated in fun group activities that delivered an important message on how residents can stay strong and active.

Walkathon: With the support of staff, residents participated in a friendly walking race. The key message: Staying active and on your feet is essential to reducing the risk of falls.

Sit-to-Stand Challenge: Residents were encouraged to complete as many chair stands as possible throughout the day. The aim was to promote the importance of regular exercise and leg strength in preventing falls.

Balance Challenge: Residents tackled a thoughtfully designed obstacle course to test and improve their balance. The key message: Balance training plays a vital role in minimising falls risk.

In addition to the activities, the Physiotherapy team also held education sessions covering sarcopenia (muscle loss), frailty, and falls prevention, highlighting the critical role of both exercise and nutrition in maintaining strength and independence.

The key message really is “stay active and on your feet.” Older adults can benefit greatly from regular resistance training in falls prevention. Other things they can do include keeping their home environment free of trip hazards, wearing shoes with good grip and checking their eyesight and hearing aids — these measures will go a long way in reducing the risk of falls.