I will make a significant down size of the situational awareness concept. All old people must consciously develop continuous awareness of the immediate situation.
Falls are a persistant reality for old people. Many other accidents that endanger well being also prevail. The reason for all is an immediate failure to grasp the present situation.
A very minor lapse in concentration can allow conditions precipitating some accidental event. That is especially true of falls.
The very first question on the PCP Medicare interview invariably is “have you had any falls in the last 6 months?”
Good example.
Another one is the pit bull.
There are many pit bulls that will walk up to strangers and lick their face—every time during their lifetime.
That fact is stunningly irrelevant for situational awareness.
A man of some 80 years who lived on the 5th floor went outside to see the Christmas lights his wife had put up. He looked up and lost his balance, fell over backwards and broke his neck. He was in the hospital for several days, but it was too late. Someone had asked him why he was out without his walker.
It’s only been a couple of weeks. May he rest in peace.