Falls in Elderly Are Contributed by a Lack of Physical Activity Essay

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Introduction

There is a rapid increase in the number of people who are living into older age. This essay will discuss the incidence of fall that is attributed to a lack of physical activity by people who are 65 years and above. With the number of elderly people rising with each passing day, it is estimated that in the next two years around 16 percent of the population will comprise of elderly adults (Hua, Yoshida, Junling, & Hui, 2007). The lack of physical activity for these individuals will be evaluated with a focus on the number of falls that are experienced by both women and men. The impact of falls will be examined to establish the efficacy and the health care costs associated with the fall. It has been established that nurses do play a vital role in promoting physical activity amongst the elderly within the community. This essay will look into the strategies that can be used to promote physical activity for the elderly within the community. Strategies that can be used for fall prevention will also be covered.

Elderly Falls

Within the community, falls have been a major health issue. It is estimated that around 30% of elderly adults (65 years and above) experience a fall at least once a year. This is set to increase, especially as the Australian population continues to age. It has expected that the aging population will increase from 16% to 23% in the year 2050. A fall is described as an even where an individual will inadvertently come to rest on the ground. The World Health Organization (WHO) has indicated that falls do happen across the globe especially those involving elderly adults. Therefore, this phenomenon is not restricted to a particular country or region. Falls are the major causes of injury for the elderly. Some of the injuries might result in disability while others have resulted in death. This goes to show the severity of falls for elderly adults. Falls do account for numerous health care costs with the costs expected to rise to $1.4 billion by 2050. The incidence rate for falls in Australia indicates that women are more prone to falls than men.

The incidence of falls in the elderly

In Australia, it is estimated that one out of three elderly adults will fall at least once every year. The falls are mainly attributed to a decline in muscle function. This denotes the need to ensure that the elderly stay active. Without physical activity, the elderly will lose the functioning of most of their muscles and this works against them as they will not be able to prevent themselves from falling. Within the community, the number of elderly adults who prefer to sit at home and watch tv or read is increasing. While this is acceptable, there is need to ensure that the elderly within the community does have some sort of physical activity that will ensure that their muscle function does not decline and they do not get frail. With decreased muscle functionality a person becomes frail and performing daily activity becomes hard. A simple task like walking up a step of stairs becomes hard. For such a person, the risks of them falling increases with each passing day. Elderly adults are already at an increased risk of suffering from falls.

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This is further compounded by their lack of physical activity. One study carried out in Australia established that during a follow-up period of 12 months 49% of the subjects fell and 23% fell more than once. This goes to show how prevalent the incidence of falls is in Australia. Within the community, it has been found that the rates are almost similar to the study with a slight decrease in the number of falls. However, repeat falls are higher. This could be attributed to the continued decrease in physical activity amongst the elderly within the community.

The good news is that a majority of the reported falls are reported to occur outdoors and not indoors. This means that there could be other contributing factors. However, physical activity is still the number one factors that…

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…to them being distracted or having to turn. The nurse should also find out if there are any medications that the patient is taking. There are some over-the-counter medications that might play a role in increasing the risk factor for the patient.

Strategies to Promote Physical Activity

It has been posited by Vieira et al. (2016) that the use of cognitive-behavioral or behavioral strategies is more effective than using health education or exercise prescriptions. With cognitive-behavioral strategies, the elderly is using the power of their own self-talk and they can push them self to achieve what they set out to achieve (King, 2001). This is more powerful than having to continuously encourage a person to partake in some physical activity. Behavioral strategies are aimed at instilling exercise behaviors in the individual. Once a person forms a pattern and behavior, it becomes hard for them to break it. This way the individual will maintain their physical activities. We cannot rule out the impact that nurses and physicians can have on encouraging people to exercise or undertake physical activity. However, these interventions do not have a lasting effect. Therefore, there is a need to use them with other behavioral methods to ensure that the elderly patient will be consistent. Encouraging the elderly patient to set goals that are achievable will get them to start physical activity and once they achieve one goal another should be set. This way they will be working towards something while they maintain their physical activity.

Conclusion

Leading a sedentary lifestyle for the elderly can be costly. The lack of physical activity has been linked to increased risks of falls by the elderly. Falls can result in physical harm and sometimes even death. Although falls are preventable, a lot needs to be done to ensure that the elderly remain active and they do not lose their motor ability. Reducing the risk of falls will also reduce the hospitalization costs for the elderly since falls have been linked to the increased hospitalization rates for the elderly. With continued physical activity, an elderly person….....

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