As the second leading preventable workplace injury, falls plague the workforce. The impact of fall related injuries is felt heavily in service-providing industries as well as transportation, utilities and the health care sector. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2018 falls to the same level resulted in 147,390 incidents causing 10 median days away from work per incident.
One of the top attributing factors in falls to the same level is balance. The National Safety Council articulates this causation as “the motion of the person generated by gravity following the individual’s loss of equilibrium.” Key to this assessment is the word “equilibrium”. Put simply equilibrium is our sense of balance. However, equilibrium is a result of complex physiological systems working in seamless concert with one another. Key components of these systems are the eyes (vision), inner ears (vestibular) and musculoskeletal system. Understanding the role each of these components plays helps us better train employees for successful fall prevention.