Preventing Falls on Ice: Essential Winter Tips for Seniors

Growing older, or becoming a carer for an elderly person, usually means becoming more aware of risks to the elderly – and taking action to prevent them.

Since falls are a major safety concern for most seniors, it’s important for older people and their loved ones to take steps, both big and small, to reduce the chances of falling. That includes year-round activities like fall-proofing homes as well as seasonal ones.

When wintertime comes around, it’s even more important to be aware of the dangers of falls and how to combat them. That’s why we’ve compiled this list of techniques and tools to help the elderly navigate outdoor environments safely.

Before winter starts

Of course, preparation is always invaluable, and that’s just as true when it comes to preventing falls on ice.

Before temperatures drop, you’ll want to check around your home to ensure you’ve created an environment that’s as safe as possible in the cold.

For most seniors, it’s absolutely essential that exterior steps are structurally stable and have a stable handrail. You’ll also want to provide adequate lighting to avert falls on ice in the dark.

Winterising your home is also a key step. That includes clearing gutters and draining garden hoses to reduce the likelihood of an icy spill of water over your front path. You’ll also want to stock up on grit and salt to sprinkle on driveways and walkways.

The above actions can certainly help, but there’s often no avoiding ice on paths or pavements in wintertime. So, seniors will need to take further measures to ensure they’re safe when walking on or near ice.

Walking aids

One commonly used type of tool for additional safety when walking on ice is the walking aid.

This category includes:

• Walking sticks or canes
• Walkers, which includes rollators (walkers with wheels) and Zimmer frames (walkers with no wheels).

Why a walking aid helps

Beginning to use a walking aid – whether it’s a stick, walker, rollator or something else – is often a major change for an older person.

However, it can also make a big difference when it comes to stability. Factors like weaker balance, painful medical conditions, muscle wasting or neuropathy can all make it harder for an elderly person to walk. A walking stick can not only help with the physical act of walking, but also provide more confidence.

Though it’s easy to think that confidence doesn’t matter, it’s actually a huge factor in keeping older people active and mobile. Indeed, fear of falling can be a true danger to seniors, especially if they have fallen once already. So, a device that provides more assurance and peace of mind is a huge win.

Similarly, a personal alarm for the elderly can also give peace of mind to seniors who are wary of falling – and to their families. This type of device is designed to allow the wearer to call for help anytime, anywhere, if a fall or other emergency occurs.

Tips about walking aids

All this being said, walking aids are like any other tool – they need to be used correctly in order to get a helpful effect.

If you think you or an older loved one might need a walking aid, you’ll definitely want to check with a GP first before going out and buying one.

That’s because the walking aid needs to be the right size for the user’s body, and the user needs to be correctly trained in using it. If the walking aid isn’t the right size or is used incorrectly, it could actually lead to more problems.

A GP or physiotherapist should be able to offer guidance about getting and using the right walking aid for an older person’s needs. For example, this resource on walking sticks from the Oxford NHS Trust can give you a sense of the techniques involved in using a stick.

Non-slip, appropriate shoes

Finding good shoes can be tricky for older people. While a younger person may be able to wear any shoe with comfort, an elderly person may have issues like arthritis in the feet which can make some shoes painful.

Still, it’s worth taking time to find the right shoe to provide a good fit and stability.

Naturally, for icy weather, a non-slip sole is absolutely essential.

But there are other points to consider too.

Elderly people sometimes choose slip-on shoes because they are easier to use – they don’t require bending over or fiddling with laces.

But, for many seniors, slip-on shoes aren’t the safest option. Especially if the ground is icy, it’s important to have a shoe that can’t accidentally fall off and cause a fall. It’s often better to choose a shoe that can be fastened onto the foot. Older people who struggle to fasten laces or buckles may prefer shoes with Velcro closures or zippers.

High-heeled shoes are likewise not recommended. Nor are clogs or shoes that don’t have a sole that bends as you step.

Why do falls in the elderly matter?

Just why is it so important to try to prevent slips and falls on ice?

Because falls can have more severe effects on elderly people in the long and short term.

For one, seniors who suffer from osteoporosis may be more likely to break a bone. Moreover, older people who suffer injuries like hip fractures may be inactive for so long that they begin to lose their mobility long-term. In fact, injuries from a fall can be the beginning of a decline in health that leads to a move to a care home.

Additionally, there are negative impacts associated with a ‘long lie’ – a fall that results in lying on the floor for an hour or more. A ‘long lie’ can cause a senior to suffer from pressure sores, dehydration, and hypothermia. It can also have enduring psychological effects, including the fear of falling that we mentioned earlier.

Get peace of mind during winter with SureSafe

The above steps can certainly help to reduce an older person’s risk of falling on snow or ice. But they can’t completely eliminate the risk – nothing can.

That’s why it’s important to add a second layer of protection. If a fall does occur, the elderly person who has fallen needs to get help fast. This can reduce the long-term impacts of the fall.

What’s needed here is a personal alarm for the elderly. Unlike a mobile phone, it’s always within reach, even to a person who’s on the floor. It only requires the touch of a single button to call for help – which is great for an older person who’s unwell or injured and unable to dial a phone.

Plus, a personal alarm with fall detection is built to call for help even if the alarm wearer is unconscious. Through a combination of sensors, the alarm constantly assesses whether the wearer has fallen. If the alarm believes a fall has occurred, it calls for assistance all by itself.

Where can you get personal alarms with these functions?

From SureSafe – a leading provider of personal alarms in the UK. We offer alarms with the functionalities we’ve mentioned and more – and our glowing ratings and reviews reflect our dedication to elderly people’s safety.

Curious to know more about personal alarms for older people? Just reach out to us on 0808 189 1671 or through live chat. You can also request a call back.