Agenda - 11-19-2013 - 6a - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

13 1 victims and 10% are falls. She said another 10% of those are falling more than once. She said 2 there needs to be an initiative to prevent those first falls. 3 She said senior paramedics and assistant supervisors have been trained to provide a 4 home visit, and each of them has been trained in a fall preventative protocol. She said the 5 protocol instructs paramedics to ask three basic questions. - Have you fallen in the past? Do 6 you feel unsteady when you are walking?Are you fearful that you may fall? - She said if 7 patients answer yes, they will be put into a database and contacted by a senior paramedic. 8 She said 29 patients have currently been identified and ES and their partners are in the 9 process of following up with phone calls and home visits to go through some fall prevention 10 protocols. 11 She said patients that opt in and sign a release form will be forwarded to the 12 Department on Aging for follow up. She said the Department on Aging will then meet with 13 these patients, and this will provide feedback to the paramedics. 14 Commissioner Gordon asked about the origin of the base population. 15 Kim Woodward said the patient criteria were anyone over 60 that EMS identifies as 16 having fallen or having a fall risk. She said the paramedic who identifies this then asks the 17 three questions and documents the responses into the database. She said the database 18 generates a report that goes to the supervisors, who can enter the patients into WebEOC. 19 Commissioner Gordon said she feels the protocol could include more questions 20 regarding behaviors and environment. 21 Kim Woodward said these three questions are asked during an emergency care 22 situation, so things cannot be too complex. She said guidance is being provided from the 23 Centers for Disease Control. She said more follow up questions are asked later in the process. 24 Commissioner Gordon asked if the system is noting the reasons for the fall. 25 Kim Woodward said there is a subset of the population who fall no matter what, but the 26 subset that fall out of fear can be impacted with preventative measures. 27 Commissioner Rich asked if the Department on Aging has classes that teach people 28 how to fall correctly. 29 Kim Woodward said she does not know, but she will find out. 30 Chair Jacobs said he was thrilled to hear about this. He said this is the third Master 31 Aging Plan, and there is an emphasis on aging in place. He said this is a key component to 32 that concept. . . 33 Kim said the name of the initiative is "Stay Up and Stay Active", and the goal is to keep 34 people in their homes and out of hospitals and nursing homes. 35 Commissioner Rich asked about the VIPER presentation coverage maps and what 36 creates the "target" looking area in the Chatham County area. 37 Bill Waddell said this is called the shadow effect. He said this is a result of the 38 transmitter being so high in the air and creating dead spots below it. He said this has taught 39 them not to put transmitters quite so high. 40 Chief Jones said almost three years ago Chapel Hill came to the Board of County 41 Commissioners with a long list of grievances and a lot of problems. He expressed thanks to the 42 Board for taking the initiative to hire the Emergency Services consultant and taking the steps to 43 move forward with many of these recent initiatives. 44 He said there are improvements in ambulance availability, dispatching, and cooperation 45 between agencies. He expressed appreciation for the effort that has gone into this, and he 46 complimented Michael Talbert for his guidance, assistance and steady hand approach. He 47 feels everyone is in a much better place now to solve many of these issues. 48 Commissioner McKee said this is a two way street with the fire departments and with the 49 Towns.