SAFETY: FALLS: When Bones and Harder Things Collide

Posted:  25 May 14
Reposted:  4 Jun 14

1.  The Purpose of this Bulletin 

To focus your attention on a safety matter of significance to a productive and happy people -- avoidable falling-down -- and which is not always taken as seriously as it merits.

To place, in easy reach some, of the practical information which has built up, from much-too-much tragic experience -- at work and leisure and elsewhere -- and which, if known and adopted, can make a favorable difference to the survival and quality-of-life for our people.


2.  Reasoning the Thing Out

One tiny, careless decision can be an expensive one -- paid for with a lifetime of avoidable misery (or an abruptly shortened life).  It's a tried-and-true way to suddenly generate -- FOR YOURSELF OR OTHERS -- a funeral, or a broken back, or a broken neck, or some other broken, sprained, dislocated, punctured, torn, crushed, amputated this or that -- or a broken SmartPhone -- or some other unfortunate chain-reaction.

Society has learned and teaches about so many painful and costly lessons having to do with falling bodies hurtling through space and being suddenly stopped by hard surfaces or soft human ones.

• or from harmful things being dropped on others, while one tries to avoid a sudden fall 
• or from the changes in the aging body which increase the likelihood and damage during such a risky life-stage
• or from the inexperience and overconfidence of the young 
• or from wanton carelessness -- and much more.

The very intelligent and mature among us revise and refine their behavior in light of relevant, corrective information. They deliberately re-program themselves to automatically avoid harming themselves or others.  And, they try their hardest to spread the knowledge -- since they know that we all can lose, if they don't.

3.  Some Examples -- Keeping it Real

Once upon a time -- a misjudgement backfired...

• You're on a ladder and you reach for something behind you, "just over there " -- you juuuust about reach it -- then, wham! (not only that, your leg gets caught in a rung and breaks an extra bone or two).  
• Or you see something you need, sitting up there, way up high, or just a bit past your fingertips -- so you grab a rickety thing to stand on, just for a second -- and wham! crash! 
• Or, needing this or that, you get up in the middle of the night, eyes full of sleep, dark house, and Jimmy left his toy truck on the stair -- WITH NO CHEAP NIGHT-LIGHTS TO WARN -- so, thump-kathump you tumble into sudden horror!  
• Or grandma is in the tub --  she gets up, suddenly dizzy or slips on the soap, grabs for the flimsy towel bar, which falls with her as she kisses or cracks her head on the bathtub rim (should have been a firm safety bar there -- a very easy thing just as useful for everyone else). 
• Or someone gets a little dizzy at exactly the wrong moment (God forbid, while driving).
• Or a teenager/young adult sees some foolhardy behavior on TV and thinks it's "cool" -- or their persuasive friends do -- or they think that the training which stunt-professionals received was optional and unimportant.
• Or the pet monkey left a banana peel in the worse possible place.
• Or...

4.  Analysis

Probably one reason such things happen to some who should know better is because they've been lucky so many times before -- but the luck-counter keeps track, until the "right" number is reached.

Another reason might be that they DON'T know better -- or forgot (same effect).

This bulletin tries to plug BOTH these holes in our COMMON SENSE -- and Safety Readiness.

5.  Some Information to Help Us Reprogram Ourselves and Others

In September, on the first day of Autumn, is the Annual National Falls Prevention Awareness Day (NFPAD). -- but that's just to raise awareness -- the full year, 24/7 is the most proper approach.

Fall Safety (Google search)

Fall Prevention Center of Excellence

Safe Kids Worldwide

Autumn Safety Tips

OSHA's Fall Prevention Campaign

CDC Homes & Recreational Safety -- Falls - Older Adults

CDC Check for Safety: A Home Fall Prevention Checklist for Older Adults

National Safety Council -- Slips, Trips, Falls

National Safety Council -- Older Adult Falls

BE THOUGHTFULLY SAFE, FRIENDS, 

WE NEED YOU -- AND INTACT!

David Nelson




All Original Content © 2014, The MENTOR Enterprises / ELMS, All Rights Reserved -- BUT, I hereby waive those rights, to this extent: You may freely copy and pass this along, if you think it will do some good -- as long as it's free of charge, unchanged, and you include this statement.