Home Safety & Fall Prevention

Falls are the most common adverse event in both hospitals and the home, and most fall-prevention questions test recognition of risk factors: age over 65, prior falls, orthostatic hypotension, sedating medications (opioids, benzodiazepines, some antihypertensives), impaired vision, and unsafe environments (loose rugs, poor lighting, clutter). Standardized fall-risk tools (like the Morse Fall Scale) quantify risk so interventions can be matched to severity rather than applied uniformly to every patient.