Cedarville University students to attend Greene County Council on Aging fall prevention event

Students from Cedarville University’s School of Nursing were recently invited to attend the Greene County Council on Aging (GCCOA) which will take place during a fall prevention event on Wednesday, September 27. 

The fall prevention event will last for two hours, starting at 1:30 p.m. in the Xenia Community Center in Xenia, Ohio. September is recognized as Fall Prevention Awareness Month in Ohio.

In an article posted on Cedarville University’s website, Dr. Michele Dodds, who serves as an assistant professor of nursing, was quoted about the importance of events like this, saying, “Fall prevention is very important for the elderly population. Falls can be one of the number one reasons for hospitalizations for seniors.” 

Those who attend the fall prevention event will find a wider variety than just one kind of senior involved in the discussion. The senior nursing students at Dodd’s senior-level Care of Populations class will be earning some of their clinical hours at the GCCOA event.

Senior nursing students who are taking part in the Care of Populations course learn how to care for a range of populations and how to prevent disease while also promoting health through a lens of public health. Two Cedarville University based clinical groups will be in attendance to help at the event. Each group will be made up of either seven or eight students, with two instructors on hand, as well.

During the event, several assessments will be conducted, such as a balance assessment and a blood pressure screening to assess the risk a senior has of being prone to falling.

Jeff Schairbaum, who serves as the GCCOA’s education and outreach liaison, was also quoted about the benefits of this event, saying, “We are giving seniors tools and resources to help prevent falls.” 

The attending students will get training on how to conduct these assessments, learning the physician assessment skills needed to screen their community’s elderly population for fall risk. 

Schairbaum went on to say, “It’s nice to have the extra resources that they provide. Two years ago, we used the nursing students to help with balance assessment. But last year there was a conflict with the date, and we definitely missed having the students’ help.” 

In addition to the fall assessments, the fall prevention event will have a device station where those in attendance will be given the opportunity to make sure that their mobility devices, such as walkers and canes, are up to date and safe to use.

The event will also have several fun activities for its guests, such as chair volleyball, all with the goal of fostering community, the idea being that relationships are as important to seniors as providing health resources.

Dodds went on to talk about the importance of community health, saying, “Nursing is always more than just the health of the person. It’s also about getting to know people on a personal level. We can be giving a service but also get to know people more personally and hear their story, and it’s good for all of us.” 

Cedarville University faculty and students are driven by the goal in their work to serve the community. Dodds illuminated this by saying, “As nurses who are called by Christ to serve, we are called to serve and minister to our community. This event gives us the opportunity to minister and to serve. It’s meaningful in that it’s another way that we can serve the Lord and reach out to people in his name.” 

Cedarville University is located in Southwest Ohio, is a Baptist, Christ-centered, and accredited school with over 5,000 enrolled students across the dual enrolled high school, graduate, and undergraduate student levels studying over 175 subjects. Cedarville University was founded in 1887 and is one of Ohio’s biggest private universities. It has been recognized across the country for its fourth national ranking by the Wall Street Journal in student engagement, accredited professional and health science offerings, high graduation and retention rates, rigorous academic programs such as its Bachelor of Science in Nursing, and authentic Christian community. More information about Cedarville University can be found at the school’s website.