Most falls occur at home and most fractures result from a fall at home. Falls can lead to a tragic loss of an older person's independence and mobility. Simple modifications to the interior of your house can cut by one half your risk of falling. Where necessary, install safety devices.

Each year, more than 1.8 million people over age 65 are treated in hospital emergency rooms for injuries associated with stairs, bathtubs, furniture, carpeting and other products seniors live with and use every day.

Thousands of these injuries are related to falls.

Many of these accidents could be prevented. Changes in furniture arrangement, housekeeping and lighting will help reduce your risk of falling at home. Use this checklist as a guide.

• Make sure light switches are at both the top and bottom of the stairs.
• Provide enough light to see each step and the top and bottom landings.
• Keep flashlights nearby in case of a power outage.
• Install handrails on both sides of the stairway and be sure to use them.
• Do not leave objects on the stairs.
• Consider installing motion detector lights, which turn on automatically and light your stairway.
• Put nonslip treads on each bare-wood step.
• Do not use patterned, dark, or deep-pile carpeting. Solid colors show the edges of steps more clearly.
• Do not place loose area rugs at the bottom or top of stairs.
• Repair loose stairway carpeting or boards immediately.

• Install grab bars on the bathroom walls near the toilet and along the bathtub or shower.
• Place a slip-resistant rug adjacent to the bathtub for safe exit and entry.
• Mount a liquid soap dispenser on the bathtub/shower wall.
• Place nonskid adhesive textured strips on the bathtub/shower floor.
• Use a sturdy, plastic seat in the bathtub if you are unsteady or if you cannot lower yourself to the floor of the tub.
• Stabilize yourself on the toilet by using either a raised seat or a special toilet seat with armrests.
• Replace glass shower enclosures with non-shattering material.

• Clear clutter from the floor.
• Place a lamp and flashlight near your bed.
• Install night-lights along the route between the bedroom and the bathroom.
• Sleep on a bed that is easy to get into and out of.
• Keep a telephone near your bed.

• Arrange furniture to create clear pathways between rooms.
• Remove low coffee tables, magazine racks, footrests, and plants from pathways in rooms.
• Install easy-access light switches at entrances to rooms so you won't have to walk into a darkened room in order to turn on the light. Glow-in-the-dark switches may be helpful.
• Secure loose area rugs with double-faced tape or slip-resistant backing. Recheck these rugs periodically.
• Keep electric, appliance, and telephone cords out of your pathways, but don't put cords under a rug.
• Eliminate wobbly chairs, ladders, and tables.
• Do not sit in a chair or on a sofa that is so low it is difficult to stand up.
• Place carpeting over concrete, ceramic, and marble floors to lessen the severity of injury if you fall.
• Repair loose wooden floorboards immediately.

• Remove throw rugs.
• Immediately clean up any liquid, grease, or food spilled on the floor.
• Store food, dishes, and cooking equipment at easy-to-reach waist-high level.
• Don't stand on chairs or boxes to reach upper cabinets. Use only a step stool with an attached handrail so you are supported.
• Repair loose flooring.
• Use nonskid floorwax.