Area seniors are set to receive safety and sustainability care lessons through a new three-year grant awarded to the Elder Services of the Merrimack Valley aimed at minimizing falls in older adults.
The $437,000 purse extended by the Administration on Community Living allows Elder Services’ Healthy Living Center of Excellence to disseminate program materials to local councils on aging, the Massachusetts Alliance of YMCAs, the Executive Office of Elder Affairs and other agencies to improve access to older adults and adults with disabilities at risk for falls.
Elder Services’ CEO Joan Hatem Roy is hopeful education through the grant will help decrease the number of hospitalizations due fall-related injuries. Currently, older adults in Massachusetts account for 84 percent of all fall-related deaths and 68 percent of all fall-related hospital stays annual, Hatem Roy said.
“Unintentional falls are the leading cause of injury related hospitalizations, observation stays, and emergency department visits across the Commonwealth” she said. “The partnerships and work under this ACL project will increase availability of community interventions proven to both prevent falls and decrease falls related health costs for our most vulnerable populations.”
Elder Services is one of 12 organizations nationwide to receive the grant funding, Hatem Roy said.