Trying to remain independent yet being in need of help with day to day home life can be a challenge. It can be overwhelming if you or a loved one doesn’t have the basic platform of information of how to stay safe in your home and healthy with your lifestyle.
Enumclaw Fire Department would like to offer safety information to senior citizens. Staying safe from falls in the home, knowing the risk factors of heart attack and stroke, and being able to remain independent as long as possbile are many achievements we want to help with.
Please read the information below. If you have further questions, please contact:
Enumclaw Fire Department at (360)825-5544 or
Jobyna Nickum with the Enumclaw Senior Activity Center at (360)825-4741.
Falls
With in our senior citizen community, Enumclaw Fire Department runs a large number of calls for fall patients, injured and non-injured. The majority of falls are preventable.
Older adults can remain independent and reduce their chances of falling if they:
•Exercise regularly. It is important that the exercises focus on increasing leg strength and improving balance, and that they get more challenging over time. Tai Chi programs are especially good.
•Ask their doctor or pharmacist to review their medicines—both prescription and over-the counter—to identify medicines that may cause side effects or interactions such as dizziness or drowsiness.
•Have their eyes checked by an eye doctor at least once a year and update their eyeglasses to maximize their vision. Consider getting a pair with single vision distance lenses for some activities such as walking outside.
•Make their homes safer by reducing tripping hazards, adding grab bars inside and outside the tub or shower and next to the toilet, adding railings on both sides of stairways and improving the lighting in their homes.
To lower their hip fracture risk, older adults can:
•Get adequate calcium and vitamin D—from food and/or from supplements.
•Do weight bearing exercise.
•Get screened and, if needed, treated for osteoporosis.
Center for Disease Control (CDC) Information on Falls:
CDC-Fall Statistics
Heart Attack
A heart attack occurs when a coronary artery, carrying blood to the muscles of the heart, is blocked. This usually happens in places where the arteries are narrow due to fat and plaque build up over time. Risk factors for heart attack include advanced age, heredity, history of smoking, high blood pressure, excess body fat, high cholesterol and inactivity.
If you or someone you know experiences heart attack symptoms, call 911 immediately!
Heart attack symptoms may include some or all of the following:
•Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, or pain in the center of the chest
•Discomfort or pain in one or both arms, back, neck, jaw or stomach
•Shortness of breath
•Cold sweat, nausea, light-headed
Please click the link below for heart attack symptoms, prevention, and information.
American Heart Association
Stroke
A stroke occurs when blood vessels carrying blood to the brain rupture or are blocked. Risk factors for stroke include advanced age, heredity, prior stroke or TIA, history of smoking, diabetes, heart disease, and history of alcohol abuse.
Get help right away by calling 911 if you or someone you know experiences symptoms of a stroke!
Possible symptoms of a stroke:
•Sudden, unexplained weakness or numbness on one side of the body
•Sudden loss of vision or dimness, particularly in one eye
•Difficulty speaking, slurring or trouble understanding others
•Sudden, severe headache with no apparent cause
•Dizziness, sudden falling
Click the link below for stroke symptoms, information, and prevention.
American Stroke Association
The Enumclaw Fire Department distributes free smoke detectors every year. If you need a
smoke detector, help with installation, or if you have a question, contact the fire
department at 360-825-5544 or click on the link: Smoke Alarms
Click the link below for information on Hearing Impaired Smoke Alarm: