NDSU Offers Fall Prevention Workshop

Stepping On is a workshop designed to help older adults learn ways to keep from falling.

The workshop will be held Jan. 8 starting at 9 a.m. at First Lutheran Church at 619 N. Broadway in Fargo. Two-hour sessions will be held once a week for seven weeks.

The workshop is sponsored by the North Dakota State University Extension Service and First Lutheran.

Stepping On will help participants identify why they fall and offer different ways to prevent falling, including strength and balance exercises, home safety check suggestions and a medication review. A display of fall prevention products also will be available.

The workshop is for people who have fallen and those who have a fear of falling. Participants will leave with more strength and better balance, and experience a feeling of confidence and independence as a result of performing various exercises and sharing falling experiences as a group.

The program was developed by Lindy Clemson of Sydney, Australia, to help older adults learn ways to prevent falls. It was brought to the U.S. by Jane Mahoney, executive director of the Wisconsin Institute for Healthy Aging, with funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other partners.

Research shows that people who complete the workshop have a 31 percent reduced rate of falling.

The cost of the workshop is $20. To register for the workshop, contact Jane Strommen at (701) 231-5948 or jane.strommen@ndsu.edu or First Lutheran Church at (701) 235-7389. The registration deadline is Jan. 3.