Senior Injury Prevention Program, (SIPP) in conjunction with Alameda County Emergency Medical Services (EMS), continues to provide healthy aging services to older adults throughout Alameda County. Services include physical activity programs for fall prevention, medication management, home safety and modification programs, and community presentations on fall prevention, driving safety, emergency preparedness, and safe medication use education.

 

SIPP held the 20th Annual Senior Injury Prevention Educational Forum virtually on January 26, 2022. With the pandemic still going strong, it was decided to hold a half-day virtual event, entitled, “Let’s Get Moving!”. The presenters focused on the importance of movement and exercise for older adults. There were 132 attendees. As a virtual event, we had more people joining from other parts of California than usual and even one from England. In the Fall, a small SIPP group began collaborating to update the Fall Prevention Resource Guide, a guide produced by Alameda County Social Services Agency. The update had been interrupted by the pandemic. The goal was set to have the guide update completed by September 2023.

 

The Partners in Care Foundation (PICF) grant being administered by EMS Senior Injury Prevention Program entered three-year funding cycle in August of 2021. The evidence-based fall prevention programs supported by the grant include A Matter of Balance, Tai Chi for Arthritis/Fall Prevention, and Bingocize (see the ad, “Fall Prevention Programs”).

 

Since virtual presentation of these programs had not been previously evaluated, not all were readily available for implementation during the early days of the pandemic. EMS was invited to host an online class pilot for the A Matter of Balance - Virtual which was done in collaboration with the Trauma Injury Prevention Coordinator of Eden Medical Center, Pam Stoker. As things opened up, a few locations hosted class in-person.

 

The pandemic did not stop SIPP members from holding events including Fall Prevention Awareness Week and from participating in the Healthy Living Festival at the Oakland Zoo.