Balance & Falls SIG

The primary purpose of the Balance and Falls SIG is to provide a forum for the increase of knowledge and quality of Physical Therapy practice in relation to older persons with balance problems and an increased risk for falling.

Join a SIG
These include:
    • Programs at CSM
    • Articles in Gerinotes or other publications
    • Initiating discussions on Listserve.
    • Journal Club
    • Newsletters to Members

There are many opportunities for participation, so please consider getting involved! To participate or learn more about current SIG activities and projects, contact the SIG chair.

SIG LEADERSHIP

  • CHAIR: Heidi Moyer, PT, DPT
  • VICE CHAIR: Haim Nesser, PT, DPT
  • SECRETARY: Beth Castellini, PT
  • NOMINATING COMMITTEE MEMBER: Deborah Constanine, PT
  • CLINICAL LIAISONS: Stefanie Bond, PT, DPT and Heather Timothy, PT, MSPT
  • RESEARCH LIAISON: Jennifer Gindoff, PT, DPT
  • EARLY CAREER PROFESSIONAL LIAISON: Holly Bennett, PT, DPT and Kimberlyn Thomas, PT, DPT
  • COMMUNITY LIAISON: Tammy McHugh, PT, DPT

BF SIG News

Get Ready for Falls Prevention Awareness Week
BF SIG Homepage

Get Ready for Falls Prevention Awareness Week

August 31, 2023

Falls Prevention Awareness Week (NFPAW) is a national health campaign observed on the first day of fall to increase awareness around falls health and injury prevention. NFPAW is an interdisciplinary effort led by the National Council on Aging (NCOA) that runs from September 18-22, 2023.

NCOA and APTA Geriatrics have both developed tools to encourage participation in the campaign, build awareness in your community, and make it easier to talk to older adults about preventing falls. Here’s how you can get ready:

1) Visit the APTA Geriatrics National Falls and Prevention Week Toolkit. Included are social media images, content text, and links to NCOA and APTA Geriatrics documents and tools.

2) Visit the NCOE National Falls Prevention Awareness Week website

3) Download the APTA Geriatrics Falls Prevention Awareness Toolkit

4) Download the APTA Geriatrics Outcome Measures Toolkit

Open access documents available from Balance and Falls SIG Tri-Alliance Campaign
BF SIG

Open access documents available from Balance and Falls SIG Tri-Alliance Campaign

September 23, 2022

The APTA Geriatrics BF SIG is proud to announce that we have created a collaborative document sharing all our open access resources to help you better provide balance and falls prevention services in the community, clinic, and beyond. Please feel free to share this with anyone who might be interested.

Access the Tri-alliance Campaign

 

2022 Fall Prevention Awareness Day Kick Off Call Information
BF SIG

2022 Fall Prevention Awareness Day Kick Off Call Information

July 8, 2022

On June 29, 2022, the APTA Geriatrics BF SIG had their Annual National Falls Prevention Awareness Day Kick Off Call to assist members in beginning to brainstorm and plan their events and efforts for the week of September 18-24. Our Clinical Liaison, Tammy McHugh, served as the creator and master of ceremonies for the event. We were honored to host the following guest speakers for the evening:

  • Cathy Ciolek, APTA Geriatrics President
  • Governors State University DPT Student Speaker Miguel Musngi with Student Panel Members TaShea’ Moore, Daniel Kusper, and Andres Garcia
  • Deb Espy, Academy of Neurologic Physical Therapy BF SIG Chair
  • Eric Galvez, APTA Oncology BF SIG Membership Chair
  • David Taylor, APTA Geriatrics House of Delegates Representative
  • Tammy McHugh, APTA Geriatrics BF SIG Community Outreach Liaison

Top resources that were shared during the call included:

A big thank you to all our speakers and to all those who attended! Did you miss the call? Listen to the call recording here or peruse through the call powerpoint.

BF SIG Events

No Upcoming Events Found

BF SIG Newsletters

BF SIG MINUTES

Balance and Falls SIG Member Resources

How to conduct virtual fall prevention

by Jennifer Nash, APTA-Geri State Advocate for Nevada Click here to Download

VIDEO: WORKING ON BALANCE AND FALL PREVENTION AT HOME, DEVELOPED BY THE NSGA/APTA GERIATRICS TASK FORCE.

From the 2020 BFSIG Falls Prevention Awareness Week Brainstorming Webinar and Guest Presentation on Virtual Balance Assessment from Winston-Salem State University, July 28, 2020

Toolkits

Outcome Measure Toolkit for Geriatric Fall/Balance Assessment

The Balance and Falls Special Interest Group of the APTA Geriatrics developed this toolkit as an updated summary of current outcome measures related to balance and fall risk assessment. It is available, OPEN ACCESS here:

Download Toolkit

Falls Prevention Awareness Toolkit: A Comprehensive Guide to Professional & Community Engagement, 2nd Edition

The Falls Prevention Awareness Toolkit developed by the Balance and Falls Special Interest Group of the APTA Geriatrics is available, OPEN ACCESS below.

The resources provided within the toolkit are designed to assist clinicians and students in creating and/or improving their community-based falls prevention events by utilizing current evidence and a wide-variety of quality resources.

Download Toolkit

Research Resources:

 

The Monthly Challenge

Every month, we send out an email to interested members with a quick summary of an aspect of balance and falls management. This email thread allows members to have topic specific communication as well as share experiences/ideas. We will also be posting the materials to our google drive which you can access at any time. Emails are sent out at the beginning of each month. If you wish to join the email chain and get the information before anyone else, email us at agptbalanceandfallssig@gmail.com .

 

National Fall Prevention Awareness Day Resources

 
 

Links of Interest:

 

Resources for your ToolBox: