Reply to How many physical falls are acceptable?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I often read here that someone's elderly parent fell "now three or four times" and how now something must change in the parent's living situation. It always makes me wonder how many physical falls is unacceptable? My father physically falls often. Sometimes it is multiple times each week and other times he will go a few weeks between falls. Fortunately, he only is bruised. No broken bones thus far.

He has severe mobility issues and it seems that his shaky legs are obviously weakening even more yet he REFUSES to move from his home. I do believe that the only time we can ever consider moving him to assisted living is if he were to fall and need hospital care.

So, are physical falls in this situation acceptable? I feel like my hands are tied for he has full cognition and states clearly and regularly that his plan is to remain in his home.[/quote]

I don't think "acceptable" is a good framing here. I think what people are saying is, after 3-4 falls, it became clear they had mobility issues, so they worked with their parent to change their living situation. Well, you already know that your father has severe mobility issues.

The question is about tradeoffs. He has full cognition, so he gets to choose the amount of risk he's willing to take on to stay in his home, and it appears that he's willing to take on a LOT of risk to do so, with his eyes wide open. Those other people's parents may have had a very different risk/reward assessment.

Yes, it seems that the most likely path here is he eventually has a bad enough fall that he lands in the hospital, and he ends up dying in the hospital or is wheelchair bound. If he's cognitively sound, he knows this, and this is what he's choosing.

I think what it's hard for our generation to fully grasp is that - the end of this story is the same no matter what. This man isn't going to be alive, happy and healthy 10 years from now. He knows this. There is no preventing it. And it's not crazy to risk a painful fall and a shortened lifespan for the hope of two more years with the life you want.

The one thing I would ask is that he wears one of the medic alert bracelets or necklaces so he can alert someone if he falls. That's an easy safety feature that basically costs him nothing. Beyond that, you've got to let it go. [/quote]

[b]Most people over 80 aren’t cognitively sound[/b].  They may be grounded in reality but often have lost the ability to make reasoned decisions.  Op is smart to research options because their dad isn’t going to do it, and will likely be forced into wherever there is an open bed after a hospitalization if no action is taken, thereby making his worse fears come true.[/quote]

Citation?[/quote]

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9118064/[/quote]

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