Kaiser's Fall Prevention Expert Speaks Up
Omay Water-Schmeder and Julie Cox promote Matter of Balance classes.
It's not a fear of darkness motivating Omay Water-Schmeder to carry a tiny flashlight on her key ring and to have motion-detecting nightlights plugged in throughout her house. Water-Schmeder has heightened awareness about stumbling over something in the dark and the complications that often arise when someone falls. She's become a fall prevention expert and a local advocate in Sonoma County for A Matter of Balance, an innovative national curriculum teaching strategies to avoid falling.
Do you have a personal reason why you are so passionate about fall prevention?
Yes, my mother fell at age 72 and broke her hip. She died within a year. Also, my aunt broke her hip at age 88 and never walked again. She lived in a nursing facility until she died at 90. Typically a fall is a turning point in someone's health.
A Matter of Balance
The Sonoma County Area Agency on Aging, in conjunction with Kaiser Permanente and other health care providers, offers Step Wise. Its eight-week class is entitled A Matter of Balance: Managing Concerns About Falls. The classes include:
- Exploring fears about falling.
- Practical strategies to manage falls.
- Setting goals to increase activities.
- Resistance training to improve flexibility, balance and strength.
- How to make a home environment safer.
There is a suggested $20 donation fee for the program. A one-time, free session entitled Safe Steps is also offered. This class teaches seniors how to create a safe home and presents an overview of activities to help them stay strong. For more information about attending either program or becoming a volunteer trainer, call 565-5984.
How can someone avoid falling, no matter what age they are?
Take more time to get things done. Slow down. Falls tend to happen when people are rushing. Other than using nightlights and a flashlight, what else do you do to prevent falling? I exercise to improve my balance and am committed to staying physically active. What typically happens after a senior falls? I think everyone knows someone who has fallen and how it impacted his or her life. A fall can be devastating for older people. They lose their independence. There's a whole downward spiral often accompanying a fall. Besides getting over the pain, they become fearful of sustaining a second fall. If they're over 65, they limit their activity and are more likely to have a second fall. What have you done as a Kaiser Permanente physical therapist related to fall prevention? I developed and teach the balance and fall prevention classes here and supported by the Sonoma Health Alliance, comprising local hospitals and the county Public Health Department. I am a member of the Sonoma County Fall Prevention Coalition coordinated by the Sonoma County Area Agency on Aging. I helped get federal funding for our county Step Wise program to offer fall prevention classes and the A Matter of Balance program. Where are the classes taught and who teaches them? They're held in places seniors gather, such as apartment complexes, mobile home parks, churches, meal sites, and senior centers. We've trained volunteer coaches to teach the classes, and I also teach classes as I mentor new coaches. What are your professional goals? I'd like to help deliver the fall prevention information beyond Kaiser Permanente patients. There are huge personal and economic costs of falling, such as when a family member must take time off from work to care for someone who's been injured in fall. It has a big ripple effect. Can you describe some of the professional fall prevention programs you've attended? I've attended and presented at statewide and national conferences focusing on fall prevention, and last year was invited to the California Fall Prevention Summit. In June, I will be a speaker at a national Kaiser Permanente conference talking about the programs we have here in Sonoma County.