Falls are the leading cause of death by injury for older Americans. They threaten the lives, safety, and independence of older adults and have an enormous impact on the cost of health care. In 2005, the total direct cost of all fall injuries for people 65 and older exceeded $34 billion.

That’s why PHI and the National Council on Aging (NCOA) have launched a new partnership to provide — at no cost — a Fall Prevention Awareness curriculum for home health care workers.

Since its launch in mid-May, the curriculum has already been downloaded over a thousand times.

Uniquely Designed

Uniquely designed for adult learners, the Fall Prevention Awareness training curriculum is designed to help home health aides across the country reduce falls and minimize injury to their clients by increasing their awareness of the risk factors for common falls and enhancing their communication skills.

And while the curriculum is primarily geared towards training home health aides, some learning activities will work across settings, and other material can be adjusted for use in nursing homes.

Participants build on existing knowledge and skills by strengthening their “observe, record, report” skills and by developing communication skills that help them address with their clients how to reduce the risk of falling.

The downloadable course includes two three-hour sessions that employers can use to meet in-service requirements.

A Fruitful Collaboration

The curriculum was designed and written by PHI’s Curriculum and Workforce Development team. Peggy Powell, National Director of Workforce Development at PHI, said that collaboration with NCOA was “extremely valuable.” NCOA’s expertise, she explained, “was key in designing this important resource for aging consumers, workers and their families alike.”

The Fall Prevention Awareness curriculum was then piloted at Cooperative Home Care Associates (CHCA), where Home Health Aides provided feedback on the curriculum as it was developed.

“PHI is honored to partner with the NCOA to make this curriculum more widely available to the 3.2 million paid caregivers who serve and support older Americans,” said PHI President Steven Dawson.

“The incidence of falls can be reduced through lifestyle adjustments and intervention programs,” said NCOA President Jim Firman. “Working with PHI, we can greatly expand training options for the dedicated home health aides who provide so much of the day-to-day care to older Americans.”

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