Published on: 02 March 2021
Last Updated on: 12 May 2026
The rates of falls and staircase-related injuries among the elderly continue to increase.
A Queensland government health report states that 100,000 people are hospitalized due to falls. The main causes include slipping, tripping, and stumbling, especially on stairs. Almost 10% of ambulance calls in Victoria attend to elderly patients who have fallen.
This article examines stair safety for senior citizens and how to proactively stop falls.
We explore safety features like stair treads and guard rails. And how the right lighting will protect the physically vulnerable.
Learn about stair safety and consider the elderly by reading these 3 tips. Then make falls and trips a thing of the past.
1. Safety Rails for Staircases:
Stair safety guardrails act as an invaluable support aid when mounting or dismounting stairs.
According to the government's WorkSafe guide, each stairway should include at least one handrail. If the stairs are wider than 100cm then two handrails are required on either side.
Slippy rails or those too large to grip are worse than useless.
A power grip style that's rectangular or circular allows the person to hold tight and use the stairs with confidence. There should be no obstructions to allow free movement. And the rails need to be visually significant so they're easy to see.
2. Stair Treads for Elderly Relatives:
Stair treads are the horizontal part of a stair on which a person steps on.
Treads are often carpeted in elderly residential homes and houses. However, this type of material can rise or bump making the tread a tripping hazard.
Non-slip treads provide a safer environment. Methods include:
rubber or abrasive treads
anti-slip tape
slip-resistant nosing
Nosing is the edge of the stair where footfall is greatest. Stairs without firm nosing will see a higher number of falls. Therefore, it's essential to include adequate nosing that is easily seen and strong enough to take a person's full weight.
Staircase installers offer a full range of stair treads available in different colors and finishes. There are multiple nosing options on offer too but ask for the right type to suit the intended setting.
3. Improve Lighting and Remove Tripping Hazards:
Stairs should always have a high illumination level. Especially when contrasted to adjacent spaces.
Shadows and low areas of light can disrupt visibility. Remove them by installing low-glare overhead lights or a stair lighting kit. Make sure to have light switches on the upper and lower levels too.
Additionally, remove any tripping hazards from the staircase.
Items like clothing or books must never block the stairs. Carers should inspect the staircase regularly and remove all items. Training in care homes should provision for this along with general safety guidelines.
Making Stairs Safer for Seniors:
Senior staircase safety should include increasing visibility, removing hazards, and upgrading staircases.
Stair injuries can be grave and life-threatening in nature for seniors. You can suffer from injuries that might require medical procedures like hip replacement surgery or one for the knee. This is one reason why staircase safety is advocated.
Adding non-slip stair treads and dual handrails not only acts as safety features but can boost confidence. Adding extra light will help too.
Make an elderly person more comfortable in their home by following these tips. Reduce falls and increase the quality of life through simple staircase additions.
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Social change is the transformation of cultures and institutions through human interactions and relationships. It is an ever-evolving process and has an overwhelming long-term impact on society.
Unfortunately, many people and influential forces try to resist change in the status quo. But, change is constant.
Three things trigger change:
Conflict:
Conflict is a constructive force as it prompts required adjustments by indicating the presence of an issue.
Inequalities, racism, failure to provide justice, religious intolerance, and status quo give rise to anger and anarchy. People come forward to address the issues raised due to conflicts. Governments get overthrown or restructured because of these conflicts.
Demographic Change:
Demographic change refers to the transition from high to low birth and death rates. When society’s demographic composition shifts, change becomes inevitable. A larger population affects the quality and quantity of resources. The demographic change occurs either by the variations in birth and death rates or migration and immigration.
Cultural Change:
Cultural change takes place by adding new elements to the existing culture. It opens up new ways, inventions, discoveries, and ideas of living. Innovation and interaction with other societies also contribute to cultural change. It is essential because it helps in modernization and acceptance of new and better ways of life.
Ways to bring Social Change:
To bring social change, one must have adequate knowledge and understanding to address societal issues that create differences.
It is also fitting to understand the role of social work and workers in the larger scheme of things. If you are interested in contributing, consider enrolling in accredited masters in social work programs to gain skills and create positive change for better well-being.
These programs enable students and professionals to learn ways to help in adult mental health, child protective care services, and formulating social policies.
With that said, the following are some commonly raised issues to be sorted out to help the ones in need.
1. Increase literacy:
Access to primary education is the right of every human. The role of education is significant in healthy and democratic societies.
The Social Change model combines learning and community development by teaching literacy skills, cultural expressions, and analytical thinking to the individuals and collective group. Many changes happen in the social sector, but they are unsuccessful in practice because of a lack of education.
Thus, education is required to bridge this gap. It is supposed to change people’s attitudes and beliefs and instill a desire for success in them.
Education helps in awareness, problem-solving, and decision-making. Increasing access to primary education in poverty-stricken areas has proven beneficial in raising living standards and growing employment opportunities.
Thus, social work efforts must focus on expanding opportunities to meet the needs of those who have limited access to quality education with minimal barriers. As an educated individual, consider taking out time to teach others and spread your knowledge. And this brings us to the next point.
2. Volunteer in your community:
Volunteering is an act of virtue, per se. Volunteering in your community expands equitability in society. It helps a person learn new skills, enhance connectivity in the community, and advance their career.
It provides a sense of achievement and allows one to have self-confidence. We often think volunteering requires a lot of time and energy. But that is not the case. You can dedicate as much or as little of your time as you wish. No matter the differences, volunteerism in your community is always beneficial and gratifying.
You can support NGOs and other charitable organizations by volunteering your time. By serving meals, planting trees, tutoring children, or caring for aged and terminally ill patients – you can volunteer in numerous ways. These simple acts can make a profound impact on society.
3. Donate for a cause:
People usually look for charitable causes and then give money. It seldom happens that people become desensitized towards such initiatives.
However, donations do not necessarily have to come in monetary form. Clothes, shelter, food, books, and even organs are all forms of contribution.
Donations allow the donor to have an increased sense of self-worth. Philanthropists worldwide help promote social change by providing funds or advocating reforms.
It significantly helps in the efficiency of non-profit organizations. By maximizing the resources available, philanthropy helps in strengthening the economy and encourages social innovation. It helps boost employee morale and customers’ brand loyalty in the long run.
4. Encourage kindness:
Acts of kindness and altruism will help you feel good. Small random acts of kindness have a substantial impact on social change.
Smiling and greeting people, picking stones from the way, a caring attitude, spreading positivity and hope, and complementing are examples of kind gestures that require little to no effort. One can practice kindness by performing small selfless acts. Consider how you can construct explicit mappings in the world to improve the actions of people around you.
People are more likely to support strangers if they previously have been observed acting kindly. It has positive psychological effects on well-being. Helping others not only feels good, but it also has health benefits. Even helping others via donations is an act of kindness. Kindness begins with the ability to empathize with others, to put yourself in their shoes, and understand the challenges they face.
Conclusion:
COVID-19 has brought disastrous changes to the world. Under the haze of anxiety, fear, we are inundated with tales of compassion, voluntary action, and daily heroism. By helping others, we build a strong society. The pointers mentioned earlier will help you decide how to help others and bring radical changes to the community.
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Social work is a profession that is growing by leaps and bounds, but the public does not always recognize the contributions of the many social workers who keep society running. Social work deserves more praise for its wide scope of services and achievements.
However, it seems that it is not getting the recognition it deserves. This is not mere observation; it is a fact, as according to a 2020 survey by Social Work England, 76% of the people involved do not think that social work is respected by society.
Social work encompasses a broad range of services with an emphasis on prevention; these include assistance with children in care, assisting with homelessness and poverty issues, developing policies that support individual rights, advocating for improved conditions in prisons, or addressing addiction problems, among many others.
There are many issues that social workers face that are possibly a foundation for the lack of praise for their field. Let us take a look at them.
Social Work Education
The fact that many qualified social workers and practitioners find it difficult to move from the sector to other sectors is telling of social work education. A lot of people who were educated in the field ended up working in various aspects of this field, such as clinical, developmental, and health social work.
These are all aspects within the same field, and that should not be a problem. The good thing is that due to the rise in awareness regarding social work, getting a degree in the field has become more accessible now. In fact, many people with bachelor’s degrees went on to pursue social work masters programs online to find places of even more influence in their fields.
The issue is that society, in general, does not consider social work to be a “competent” or “competitive” degree. Social work degrees suffer the same stigma as gender studies and other social sciences degrees that people who pursue these degrees will not end up with stable jobs.
In reality, social workers can find jobs in HR unions, public relations, and even in education as professors or counselors, among many other fields of work.
Negative Media Coverage
With the increase of negative media coverage and social problems, it makes sense that people are not respecting the field of social work.
Many believe that the reason for this is due to a barrage of negative media articles. The fact is that there are hardworking social workers in all areas of the field, and they are making strides for humanity every day. However, many do not hear about these inspirational deeds. They only hear about when things go wrong, which is far too common.
Most of the media coverage that social workers get is when a group, community, or NGO is found to be involved in negative areas such as bribery, corruption, spreading lies, and other matters of the ilk. In a survey by YouGov, it was revealed that 82% of the masses involved believed that the media was responsible for the negative image of social workers.
Whenever the authorities instigate any action against negative matters, it becomes the most publicized headline on the news bulletin and ends up making the front page of newspapers.
Disregard For The Vulnerable
Although social workers toil away for everyone, they are considered a godsend for those susceptible to harm. Whether we’re talking about religious minorities, sexual minorities, marginalized communities, or victims of assault and violence, there are branches of social work readily available to help everyone.
The issue arises that the general majority does not pay much attention to the issues of minorities. Unless people are activists, they do not actively take part in bringing light to the issues of marginalized communities.
Since social workers are associated with minorities and marginalized communities, when the aforementioned get sidelined, so do those who work for them.
Lack Of Funds
The lack of adequate funding and resources is a major problem that persists in the social work field. Since social workers often belong to private organizations, their requirements to put their plans into action often go unfulfilled.
Social workers have a wide range of issues that they deal with in society, and these issues cost them a lot of money to deal with. The fact that many state and local governments are cutting down on social work budgets is disheartening for the many who work hard every day to serve their communities well.
Unrealistic Expectations
The general public has set unrealistic expectations in the field of social work. These general expectations are the reason why social workers feel like they shouldn’t be satisfied with their jobs. The more demanding a job seems to be, the more dissatisfied they become, feeling as if they should do more and more. Often, many social workers do work for organizations, but they do so at a very low cost.
Many of the causes for the lack of respect given to the field of social work lie in the history of the field. Social work is officially a recent profession despite the fact that many have unknowingly served under its banner, so its history has not been as long and glorious as other professions. But with time, society will come to realize how much social workers do and how important they truly are for their stability and betterment.
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We live in what is perhaps the most unpredictable time of the century. There is a pandemic out on the streets and we have been forced to abandon our ways of interaction. Businesses have been forced to adapt almost overnight, bringing about a radical shift in operations. Nonprofits have also been forced to do the same. In just the last year the importance of fundraising platforms has risen exponentially.
Fundraising has been the key to the operations of any and every nonprofit. Lately, the more commonly relied-on fundraising methods have been made redundant. A lot of nonprofits have been forced to go back to the drawing board and reevaluate ways to gather funds. Luckily the existence of text messaging platforms for nonprofit can easily get into the middle of it and utilize the same channels to make their ends meet.
Why does online fundraising work?
The reason is simple; we live in times where people are willing to lend out a helping hand, anywhere, anytime. Nonprofits simply need to host events online and let their donors know that they are very much active and are trying to make a difference in their communities irrespective of the condition. Sending your message across and showing them the work you are doing can appeal to all kinds of donors.
Nonprofits can quickly adapt using fundraising platforms to reach out to donors and volunteers using the same methods that businesses rely upon. These channels have now become the normal way to work through and nonprofits have realized that they also need to be malleable. The pandemic has changed our understanding of what normal is and donors will be understanding. This is why hosting events, and especially fundraisers online has shown a lot of promise.
Let us look at five great ideas you can use to supercharge your online fundraising campaign.
Five great online fundraising ideas
1. Peer-to-peer fundraising
The most innovative and proven way to raise funds online is through peer-to-peer fundraising. P2P fundraising accounts for nearly a third of every online donation. The idea is to use the credibility of your donors and their contacts to gather funds for your nonprofit.
A great statistic is that ¼ emails sent by P2P fundraisers to their peers result in a donation. It might seem meager, but it is staggering when you compare it to the fact that 1/1250 emails from nonprofits result in a donation.
Nonprofits can encourage donors to raise funds and run campaigns on their behalf. They can enlist the help of fundraising platforms to build their campaigns and send emails to their peers. Nonprofits can set up these directly on their websites. They can even use a personal appeal and a social sharing button on their website for direct encouragement.
2. Email flash fundraiser
Another third of every donation made online comes through Emails. Yes, even in this day and age when instant messaging is the norm, E-mails more than do their part to raise funds. It is one of the older ways to gather funds and chances are your nonprofit has already finished its email fundraising campaign for the year. No worries, there are no limits to how many times you can leverage email fundraisers.
A great idea would be to select a day and conduct an email fundraising blitz. You should not choose a popular day such as Tuesdays. Enough organizations are running Giving Tuesdays. Instead, choose a day that has symbolic importance to your organization or its cause. Your emails should build up a narrative that highlights your cause, the day, and a call to action. Urgency is the key and the better you express the need of the hour, the more likely you are to receive donations.
You may go through: 8 High-Need Animal Shelter Donations
3. A drive for donation matching
The idea behind donation matching is to encourage people to contribute, knowing that in the grand scheme of things the total donated amount will be big. Use the frenzy created by your flash email fundraising campaign to launch a drive for donation matching. You can secure a match from a company and advertise it in your email campaign.
Donation matching is a good way to keep the interest afloat and to attract the younger crowd. Studies show that millennials are more likely to donate if they know companies are going to be matching their donation.
Donation matching can also be used to boost a fundraiser. If there is a noticeable decline in the donations, launch a donation matching drive amid another campaign to acquire more funding.
4. Crowdfunding
There is this misconception amongst nonprofits that crowdfunding is meant only for individuals. This fact could not be further from the truth. Nonprofits can use crowdfunding to amass a wealth of funds in a very short period. They can also use crowdfunding to appeal to a whole new group of donors.
Through crowdfunding, nonprofits can gather funds for specific causes and projects. Nonprofits can easily set up a page on crowdfunding sites. They also have social sharing options to further promote your cause.
PRO TIP: Before you choose a crowdfunding site, check if they have an easy-to-use UI, integration with compatible software, a mobile-friendly page, and space to tell your story.
5. Prospect research
While this may not qualify as an idea as such, prospect research can help you land big philanthropists for your donation pool. Nonprofits can conduct thorough research to identify prospective donors. Doing so can help them focus on donors that can make a difference.
Prospect research is especially important when it comes to online donors. The reason for that is online donations come in small amounts and it is hard to identify which donors can contribute in a big way. Research can help you land bigger donations.
Final Thoughts
These are just some of the ways you can maximize your donation pool through online fundraisers. By using the right tools and strategies your nonprofit will be back on its feet and perhaps, even run better than it did before.
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Stair safety guardrails act as an invaluable support aid when mounting or dismounting stairs.
According to the government's WorkSafe guide, each stairway should include at least one handrail. If the stairs are wider than 100cm then two handrails are required on either side.
Slippy rails or those too large to grip are worse than useless.
A power grip style that's rectangular or circular allows the person to hold tight and use the stairs with confidence. There should be no obstructions to allow free movement. And the rails need to be visually significant so they're easy to see.
Stair treads are the horizontal part of a stair on which a person steps on.
Treads are often carpeted in elderly residential homes and houses. However, this type of material can rise or bump making the tread a tripping hazard.
Non-slip treads provide a safer environment. Methods include:
Stairs should always have a high illumination level. Especially when contrasted to adjacent spaces.
Shadows and low areas of light can disrupt visibility. Remove them by installing low-glare overhead lights or a stair lighting kit. Make sure to have light switches on the upper and lower levels too.
Additionally, remove any tripping hazards from the staircase.
Items like clothing or books must never block the stairs. Carers should inspect the staircase regularly and remove all items. Training in care homes should provision for this along with general safety guidelines.
