What to do if an elderly person falls

Most families know the basics of home safety for the elderly, such as reducing the risk of a fall. Far fewer know what to do when an elderly person falls, and that gap can matter as much as the fall itself.

This guide covers that gap. We'll walk through what to do and what not to do while someone is falling, how to check them over safely, when to call 999, and how to help them recover in the days that follow.

If you haven't checked already, our guide to falls at home explains why falls occur in older people, and covers reducing the risk in the first place.

If someone starts to fall

Most people's instinct is to catch someone who's falling. Resist it if you can.

Trying to take a falling adult's full weight is one of the most common ways people hurt their own back and shoulders. It can also injure the person falling, by twisting or jolting them as you grab.

If you're close enough and it's safe, guide rather than grab:

• Steer them away from a hard edge, a radiator, or the stairs if you can
• If you're already supporting them, lower them to the floor in a controlled way. Keep your own back straight and let them slide down rather than taking their weight
• Protect their head where you can. A head injury changes the outcome of a fall more than almost anything else
• If you're not close enough to help safely, let the fall happen. Most falls don't cause serious injury, and two injured people are a worse outcome than one

In the first moments after a fall

The urge to get someone up quickly is strong. It's worth resisting it for a minute or two.

Stay with them, and don't move them yet. Moving someone with a fracture or spinal injury can make it considerably worse. If they mention numbness, tingling, or can't feel their arms or legs, treat it as a possible spinal injury. Keep them as still as you can and call 999.

Talk to them. Check they're awake and responding. Ask if they know where they are and what happened. Treat it as serious if they can't remember the fall, or lost consciousness. If they don't respond at all, call 999. Stay close and watch their breathing while you wait, and only move them if you need to keep their airway clear.

Ask where it hurts before you look. Then check for bleeding, swelling, or a limb at an odd angle.

Keep them warm. A blanket, coat, or towel helps, especially on a hard or cold floor.

Call 999 straight away if the person

• Can't get up, even with help
• Has injured their head, neck, back, or hip
• Has numbness, tingling, or can't feel or move their arms or legs
• Is confused, drowsy, not fully awake, or vomiting
• Has severe bleeding
• Shows any sign of a stroke: face drooping on one side, weakness in one arm, or slurred speech
• Has chest pain or is short of breath

Also seek same-day medical advice for any head injury if they take blood-thinning medication, even if they seem completely fine. Common painkillers and some antidepressants can have this effect without it being obvious. Check the NHS medicines list if you're not sure. If none of the above applies but you're unsure, call NHS 111 for advice.

If they seem unhurt and want to get up

Only help someone up if they're alert, in no real pain, and able to move their arms and legs normally. Let them do the work. Your job is to steady the furniture and stay close, not to lift.

• Put a sturdy chair near them, one that won't slide or tip
• Ask them to roll onto their side, rest, then push up onto their hands and knees. A cushion under the knees helps
• Ask them to crawl to the chair and put their hands on the seat
• Ask them to bring one foot forward and plant it flat on the floor
• They push up through that leg and their arms, and turn to sit down
• Let them sit for a while before standing. Make them a hot drink and stay with them

Stop at any point if they feel pain, dizziness, or panic, and call for help instead. Never try to lift an adult off the floor on your own, and avoid hooking your arms under their armpits from behind to hoist them up. It's a common instinct, but it's one of the easiest ways to hurt you both.

If they can't get up and you're waiting for help

• Stay with them and keep talking. Waiting on the floor is frightening, and the fear often lasts longer than the bruises
• Keep them warm and insulated from the floor where you can, without moving them much
• Encourage them to move a little every half hour if they're able, such as wiggling their fingers and toes. This helps circulation and reduces the risk of pressure sores
• Don't give them anything to eat or drink if they may need surgery, unless a clinician says otherwise
• Have their medication list and any care notes ready for the ambulance crew

In the days after a fall

A fall is often a signal rather than an accident. Book a GP appointment even if nothing was broken.

• Ask the GP to review their medication. Some common prescriptions affect balance or blood pressure on standing
• Ask about a referral to a falls clinic or a strength and balance programme, available on the NHS in most areas
• Watch for confusion, new drowsiness, or worsening hip or groin pain in the hours and days afterwards. Head injury symptoms can take up to 48 hours to appear, so keep watching even once the initial shock has passed. Any of these need same-day medical attention
• Look at what caused it. A rug, poor lighting on a landing, a rushed trip to the bathroom at night, or dizziness due to dehydration, are all common and fixable

Expect the fear to linger. Many people become less active after a fall, which weakens them and makes another fall more likely.

Gentle, regular movement is usually the better response, and eating and drinking well supports the same recovery. Our guides to staying mobile as you age and meal preparation for older people cover how to manage both. A GP or physiotherapist can advise on what's right for that person, whether it's your parent or someone else you care for.

If the fall led to a hospital stay, our guide to care after a hospital discharge covers what to arrange before they come home.

If they live alone

• A pendant alarm or fall-detection device, kept on the person rather than on a shelf, makes the biggest difference to how long someone waits on the floor
• Fit a key safe, or leave a key with a trusted neighbour, so help can get in without breaking the door
• Practising getting up from the floor while they're well is worth doing
• Agree a check-in routine, so a long silence gets noticed quickly

If a fall has made you reconsider whether your parent is safe living entirely on their own, you don't have to decide everything at once. Emergency home care can introduce a carer within 24 hours if you need help right away. For the longer term, home care options range from a few hours a week up to full-time, round-the-clock live-in care.

Elaine's story: getting her mum back home after a fall

Elaine's mum, Dorothy, was 87 and living with dementia when the council assigned an Enablement Team to help her recover after a hospital stay. The team wasn't able to give her the support she needed and ended up falling out of bed and spending the night on the floor, leading to another extended hospital stay. A temporary stay in a care home left her in tears, asking Elaine to get her out.

Elaine found Elder and arranged live-in care instead. "After the first night she was settled and happy in her own home," Elaine says.

Read Elaine's full story

Support if this has just happened to your family

Every family's experience of this is different, and it's normal to feel shaken even once the immediate danger has passed. Your loved ones might play the fall down or not want to talk about it, often out of worry that it makes them seem less capable. That's a common reaction, not a sign of anything being hidden from you.

If this has left you wondering whether your parent needs more support day to day, our care advisors are happy to talk through your options, whatever stage you're at.