From WisPolitics.com/WisBusiness.com …
— Fall-related emergency medical service calls grew by roughly 10,000 in 2024 compared to the previous year, The Department of Health Services announced today.
A DHS report shows Wisconsin has seen fall-related EMS calls increase every year since at least 2019, with the number growing to 140,293 in 2024 from 131,879 in 2023. There were 104,729 fall-related EMS responses in 2019. Wisconsin’s aging population and lack of changes to the way the state prevents falls, related injuries and deaths will continue to increase, further straining EMS and the health care system, according to the report.
Age and health, housing type and age, and access to health care play major roles in fall rates.
Emergency medical professionals often respond to the same addresses for repeated injuries and falls, indicating that people who repeatedly call EMS for fall-related injuries lack access to nearby health care resources.
Falls made up about 21% of all 911-related ambulance responses in 2024, with 62% of those being at private residences and 13.7% at nursing homes.
In some good news, the share of responses that resulted in ambulances transporting fall victims slightly declined in 2024 compared to 2019, according to a graph in the report, but the share of victims who refused transport also slightly increased.
Steps to reduce the chances of falling include improving lighting, reducing clutter, making commonly used items easily accessible and engaging in fall-prevention workshops such as Stepping On, according to the report.
See the release.
See the report.
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