National Seniors' Safety Week
November 6-12, 2005
The Canada Safety Council's 17th Annual National Seniors' Safety Week, which takes place from November 6-12, 2005, is an opportunity to focus on injury prevention for seniors. This year's theme - "It's Easy to Make Your Home a Safer Place" - encourages seniors and caregivers to safeguard seniors' homes against dangers that may cause a fall or other mishap.
To mark this week, a report entitled  Seniors' Falls in Canada will be showcased at the Canadian Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion Conference to be held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on November 6-8, 2005.
Prepared by the Public Health Agency of Canada, the report presents a comprehensive analysis of national data on fall injuries and deaths of Canadians age 65 and over. The report also discusses risk factors and best practices for the prevention of injuries among seniors living in both community and institutional settings.
Falls are the biggest safety issue for Canadian seniors for a number of reasons. Seniors are more at risk for falling on stairs than younger adults and they are more likely to suffer a severe injury as the result of a fall. In addition, falls account for almost two thirds of injuries for which those over age 65 are hospitalized. Falls are also the leading cause of fatal injury among seniors.
One in three - or 1.3 million - Canadian seniors experience a fall each year. Given these staggering numbers, it is important for seniors and caregivers to learn how they can prevent these falls from occurring.
By taking just a few minutes to check their homes, seniors and caregivers can prevent a future injury. The Public Health Agency of Canada offers the following tools to help inform Canadians on injury prevention:
More information about National Seniors' Safety Week is available at the
Canada Safety Council Web site.
We wish you all a safe fall season - without falls!
Dr. Carolyn Bennett
Minister of State (Public Health)
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