The fall you can prevent

About one in three people over 65 falls each year, and about half of those over 80. Falls are the most common reason older people end up in A&E, and a hip fracture changes a life. The risk factors are well known, which is why most falls can be prevented.

A previous fall, muscle weakness and poor balance, getting up at night, four or more medicines (especially sedatives and blood pressure tablets), poor eyesight, foot problems, dehydration, loose rugs and poor lighting, and fear of falling itself, which makes people move less and get weaker. The five-question check.

The small daily things: the right footwear, lights on, a drink within reach, medicines taken as prescribed, strength exercises done, a hand on the stairs, and a safe routine for getting up. Plus arranging the bigger things: a GP medication review, an eye test, an occupational therapy visit for rails. The eight steps.

Tell the GP even if there is no injury; they can refer to a falls clinic. Look for the cause: dizziness, a new medicine, a rug, the dark. Put help in place for the risky moments, and start strength and balance work as soon as it is safe. The weeks after a fall are when the next one is most likely. Leaving hospital: what to arrange.

Hourly visits at the risky times are £18 to £25 an hour, typically £19.47. A sleeping-night carer is £160 to £190 a night. Live-in care starts from £1,050 a week. All with our fee included. The full cost guide.

Yes, and it is the only thing that reverses the risk rather than managing it. Strength and balance work two or three times a week, and a daily walk, reduce falls in people in their eighties. The trick is doing it every day, which is where a carer helps. How to build strength at 80 and how far to walk each day.

Usually not. Stairs are strength training, and stopping makes people weaker. A second rail, good light, no rush and, where needed, someone alongside is better than moving downstairs. If the stairs are unsafe, an occupational therapist can advise on a stairlift. Is climbing stairs good for the elderly?

Yes, within limits. A physiotherapist sets the programme and is the only person who changes it. A carer can prompt your relative, read out the sheet, walk alongside and write down how it went. Carers are not physiotherapists and we do not check training, so ask the physiotherapist to show the carer any hands-on help. That combination is what gets people back on their feet after a hip or knee operation or a stroke. Post-operative care.

Worth having, especially for someone living alone, but they respond to a fall rather than prevent one. Use them alongside the prevention steps and a daily visit. Pendant alarms and sensors. Home technology for the elderly.

Every carer has an Enhanced DBS check, ID and right-to-work verification and an online interview before appearing in a search, with renewal or rechecks depending on the accepted route. You choose the carer and meet them first. What we check, and what we don’t.