Fall Prevention

Falls are distressing and can cause severe, potentially life-threatening injuries, especially in older people. Holsman Physical Therapy has 17 locations throughout New Jersey and New York City that offer specially designed fall prevention and balance training using evidence-based practices as part of a personalized treatment plan. The team’s coordinated, multidisciplinary approach helps to prevent falls and the injuries and complications they cause. Call Holsman Physical Therapy to discover how you could benefit from the team’s specialized fall prevention program, or request an evaluation online today.

What is fall prevention?

Fall prevention strategies help people with an increased risk of falling to avoid falls. Anyone over 65 could benefit from a fall-prevention assessment, but those more at risk might benefit from an earlier evaluation.

Your risk of falling is higher if you have a condition that affects your vision, balance, muscle strength, and/or coordination. Movement disorders and other conditions that increase your fall risk include:

• Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia
• Arthritis
• Stroke
• Diabetes
• Heart attack
• Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• Foot disorders
• Excess body weight
• Frailty
• Neuropathy (nerve damage or dysfunction)
• Chronic pain

Certain medications may increase your fall risk if they disrupt your balance or make you dizzy. Hazards in your home, like clutter, loose cables, poor lighting, and a lack of grab rails in the bathroom, increase the likelihood of falls.

Why is fall prevention important?

Falls are distressing and frightening and could cause severe injuries. This is especially so in older people with osteoporosis — a disease that weakens your bones so they snap or crumble easily.

Injuries like hip, arm, and other fractures are common in older patients after a fall. These disabling, painful injuries can severely limit mobility and often shorten life expectancy. Fear of falling can prevent people from doing activities they enjoy or remaining independent.

Holsman Physical Therapy’s fall prevention programs help you avoid these outcomes and remain confident and active.

What does fall prevention involve?

The Holsman Physical Therapy team’s No Fall Protocol® is a tailored 12-week intensive program directed and supervised by licensed physical and occupational therapists. The program uses the CDC’s Stopping Elderly Accidents and Injuries (STEADI) algorithm for fall risk screening, assessment, and intervention.

Depending on your fall risk factors, the No Fall Protocol may include:

• Physical therapy evaluation
• Gait and balance impairment treatment
• HolStep™ gait and balance overhead harness system training
• Podiatrist referral for foot and ankle problems
• Eye doctor referral for vision problems
• Activities of daily living (ADL) and home safety assessment/intervention
• Otago fall prevention exercise program
• Vestibular rehabilitation for balance issues

The Holsman Physical Therapy team works with your primary care provider for fall evaluation, treatment, and medication management.

The No Fall Protocol significantly reduces falls, improves confidence, helps you remain active, and keeps you safe at home. Call Holsman Physical Therapy to arrange a fall prevention assessment or book an appointment online today. 

The practice has convenient locations in Lyndhurst, Fair Lawn, Cedar Grove, Caldwell, Bloomfield, Maplewood, Newark, South Orange, Clifton, Paterson, Kearney, Jersey City, and Rahway, New Jersey, and the Crotona and Van Nest neighborhoods in the Bronx and the Cypress Hills neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York City.