As part of Fall Prevention Awareness Week, recognized the week of Sept. 21 in Kentucky, the Kentucky Safe Aging Coalition (KSAC) is hosting the Virtual 2026 Kentucky Fall and Osteoporosis Prevention Summit on Sept. 24.
“We do it virtually so anybody and everybody can attend,” said Roy Tapp, coordinator of KSAC.
The summit will be held on Zoom from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST. Registration is free and open to the public. Click here to see the agenda and to register, or go to: https://uky.zoom.us/meeting/register/hei7jQ2gRhauvwu-ui1a4w#/registration.
Continuing education credits are available for social workers (5.15 credits), nurses (6.18 hours) and community health workers (5.15 credits).
Sessions at the summit will examine balance and mobility interventions, home modifications, behavioral health, osteoporosis, fragility hip fractures and community prevention resources. The program will also address the effects of social isolation and suicide among older adults. The variety of topics reflects the many physical, medical, behavioral and environmental factors that can contribute to falls, which continue to pose a growing threat and safety concern for Kentucky’s aging population.
In 2025, 10,266 Kentuckians aged 65 and older were hospitalized as a result of fall-related injuries, the highest number recorded during eight years, according to a three-page Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center fact sheet, “Falls among Older Adults.”
The fact sheet also shows that from 2018 to 2025, 2,787 Kentuckians aged 65 and older died from fall-related injuries, an average of nearly 348 deaths each year. During the same period, older Kentuckians experienced 73,303 fall-related inpatient hospitalizations, averaging more than 9,100 hospitalizations annually.
Tapp said some of these numbers are likely even higher because “not everybody who falls will seek medical attention.”
Tapp added that one of the most important things people 65 and older can do to prevent falls is to take responsibility for their own health and ask to be screened for fall risk, including osteoporosis.
“When we go to the physician, we should say, ‘Okay, this is my concern,’ he said. “Falling can be greatly reduced or eliminated in one’s life. It can be eliminated. This is a fixable issue if we take the responsibility and address it.”
He said, it’s important to keep moving, whether that be walking, lifting properly, or doing household and garden chores.
“In other words, just don’t sit on the couch and watch TV. Get out. Be active. Challenge yourself,” he said.
He added that beyond the summit, KSAC is available to do educational events about fall safety and other aging-related topics across the state. He said KSAC also offers virtual quarterly meetings that are available to anyone who wants to listen in.
For additional information on KSAC or the Fall and Osteoporosis Prevention Summit, contact Roy Tapp at [email protected] or visit the KSPAN older adult safety webpage.
