By Dave DeFusco

Falls are the number-one cause of injury to senior citizens and too often the result is a debilitating fracture, loss of independence or death. Inspired by an Occupational Therapy Doctorate credo to identify a societal problem and solve it, Judy Chalouh-Benjamin, who graduated from the Katz School last year, created an educational series for those 65 and older on how to avoid slips, trips and falls, and even on how to fall the right way.

Her series, which covered everything from hazard identification to falling safely, was one of seven student presentations that were part of a Capstone Dissemination Day sponsored by the Occupational Therapy Doctorate program.

Chalouh-Benjamin said one in four seniors in the United States over the age of 65 sustain a fall, resulting in $50 billion spent annually on medical care. She recommended that seniors, being less agile, take a variety of measures to ensure they create a safe living environment.

“Through a deep analysis of the literature, I found that many older adults aren’t knowledgeable about fall prevention strategies to reduce fall risk,” she said.

For her doctoral capstone, Chalouh-Benjamin created a multiweek, multimedia educational program, which included video, slides, handouts and exercises to demonstrate various concepts informed by the theory of andragogy, which is concerned with older adults’ motives, learning styles and needs.

She then presented her program to residents of JASA, which operates 10 affordable housing properties and is a licensed home care agency in the New York area. On the right way to fall, for example, she advised senior citizens to direct their falls by learning forward in the direction they want to fall, the key being to land on open areas free of clutter, people or objects and ideally onto to soft areas such as grass or carpet.

The most important thing, she suggested, is protecting their body and head. When falling forward, the instinct is to stick out one’s hands to break the impact, which often results in a broken wrist and other injuries. The safest approach is by tucking the chin to the chest and bending the elbows and knees inward like a ball.

“The residents loved the materials that I gave them because it changed the way they approached risky situations,” she said. “It’s always a pleasure working with the older adult population because they have so much life experience to share. It was a very enjoyable experience. Learning is only fun when it is tailored to be so.”

To evaluate the program's effectiveness, Chalouh-Benjamin conducted an assessment afterward to determine their understanding of fall-prevention strategies.

Dr. Alexandra Laghezza, capstone coordinator and clinical assistant professor, inspired Chalouh-Benjamin to research fall prevention since the program is committed to having students identify an unmet challenge in society, research solutions and then solve it with a concrete action.

“In class, we encourage students to analyze the literature, identify a gap and seek an answer to a desired question,” said Laghezza. “This is how the scholar-practitioner mindset is formed, and emphasis is placed on intervention.”