Injury prevention is believed to be a strategy for avoiding or reducing the severity of bodily injuries caused by external factors such as collisions. Injury prevention is a part of safety and public health procedures, with the objective of improving population health by diminishing injuries and thereby enhancing the quality of life. Injury prevention tactics encompass a wide range of measures, several of which are categorized as components of injury prevention, including education, engineering improvements, and policy regulation and enactment. One of the dangerous types of general injuries that can have significant negative consequences on human health is falls. Under normal conditions, falls of varying severity are dangerous accidents that cause damage to physical health. However, the risks of complications and fatal outcomes increase in proportion to the age of the person. This occurs since older adults, in this case, aged from 65, due to numerous health chronic diseases, have weakened immunity and body resistance. In order to resolve the relevant problem of falls in older adults, it is necessary to create educational programs for training specialists and collaborative networks for improving the effectiveness of service provision.
The health results of a set of people, including the dispersion of those consequences within the group, are referred to as population health. It is considered to be a method of health care that attempts to enhance the health of a significant number of individuals (Lantz, 2019). It is possible to state that population health is compiled of three separate parts, including health outcomes, variations of health protective factors, and policies and treatments. The population health idea shifts the focus away from the individual paradigm, which is typical of much conventional medicine. Population health attempts to supplement traditional public health initiatives by addressing a larger variety of issues that have been found to affect the health of various groups.
In this situation, it is impossible to deny the existence of danger from falls among the elderly, as well as to ignore their negative consequences since statistics demonstrate the relevance of the problem. Unintentional injuries are the sixth largest cause of mortality in the elderly, with falls accounting for the majority of these deaths (Burns & Kakara, 2018). Each year, approximately one in every four United States of America citizens over the age of 65, older people, falls, and fall-related emergency hospital appointments are reported to be over three million per year (Burns & Kakara, 2018). Therefore, it is feasible to emphasize the importance of discussing the issue of falls from the perspective of population health and governmental healthcare authorities since the effects are believed to be numerous.
What concerns the state or city level, it is obligatory to depict the conditions and the statistical data in terms of the state of New Jersey. Utilizing the partially attributable proportion technique, the state of New Jersey has one of the highest projected all-payer medical cost for older adult falls (Haddad et al., 2019). Analyzing the reports from various American states, New Jersey is considered to be the state having the greatest number of older adult fall hospitalizations and subsequent complications, losing exclusively to Florida and New York (Haddad et al., 2019). Consequently, it can be concluded that the city of New Jersey, as part of the state, is located in the risk group among the other American regions. Thus, compared to different parts of the country, people, especially older adults, possess increased chances of obtaining health-related issues due to the problem of falls. The statistics and cases from the state of New Jersey require additional examinations and decision-making procedures since the region depicts leading positions among the negative consequences of fall injuries.
Evaluating the danger of falls and discussing the issue, it is essential to highlight the presence of mortality rates which illustrate the demographic situation and demonstrate the number of deadly accidents. Considering the state level of the issue, from 2007 to 2016, the total rate of older adult fatalities due to falls increased by 31% nationwide (Burns & Kakara, 2018). Referring to the average annual percentage change, a substantial increase in mortality rates from falls in older adults was determined in the state of New Jersey (Burns & Kakara, 2018). As reported in the statistical data researchers, the mortality rates, also concerning the state of New Jersey, remain high and underline certain risks for the age group. At the same time, it is important to note that in terms of trends, both national and state data sets depict negative development due to the increasing numbers of fatal falls among the elderly.
Healthy People 2020 is a declaration of public healthcare objectives aimed at identifying the most serious avoidable health concerns and setting national targets to mitigate them. The major goal of the Healthy People 2020 program for the topic of falls in older adults can be defined as strengthening older individuals’ wellness, mobility, and quality of life ( Older Adults , 2020). What concerns the overview, the number of elderly individuals is rising at an extraordinary rate as Americans live longer; in 2014, 14.5% of the United States population was 65 or older ( Older Adults , 2020). The objectives of the program include helping millions of individuals retain their autonomy and wellbeing and assisting older adults with injuries in efficiently managing their conditions and accepting the responsibility of their health ( Older Adults , 2020). In general, Healthy People 2020 is a national government’s preventative initiative for creating a healthy community.
Considering the population level prevention and health promotion review, it is essential to mention several population-based health education interventions that will help the group of older adults. Firstly, the collaboration with the Center for Disease Control and the use of technologies and instructional resources can assist medical professionals in helping individuals reduce their chance of falling ( Older Adults , 2020). Moreover, evidence-based falls avoidance and prevention strategies performed in social settings by aging services and other local agencies are supported by the Administration for Community Living ( Older Adults , 2020). Finally, nurses or nursing assistants are being assessed as potential falls care practitioners by the National Institute on Aging and the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute ( Older Adults , 2020). As a result, the interventions and practical measures in the problem of falls include the elaboration of educational programs for medical specialists and the creation of professional collaborative approaches.
In conclusion, it is feasible to emphasize the importance of discussing the issue of falls in older adults from the perspective of population health and governmental authorities since the effects are believed to be numerous. The statistics and cases from the state of New Jersey require additional examinations and decision-making procedures since the region depicts leading positions among the negative consequences of fall injuries. The objectives of the Healthy People 2020 program include helping millions of individuals retain their autonomy and wellbeing and assisting older adults with injuries in efficiently managing their conditions and accepting the responsibility of their health. The interventions and practical measures in the problem of falls include the elaboration of educational programs for medical specialists and the creation of professional collaborative approaches.