GE Healthcare and Wisconsin Medical Society Produce National Public Service Announcements to Prevent Falls, Protect Independence and Mobility of Elderly

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WAUKESHA, WI., – GE Healthcare announced today the launch of two new public service announcements (PSAs) designed to help reduce serious injury and death among the elderly. The series of two 60-second PSAs, titled “Preventing Falls” offers important suggestions that, if followed at home and in the hospital, can reduce by half an elderly person’s risk of falling, according to the Wisconsin Medical Society. The PSAs will appear nationwide on the Patient Channel, a patient education television channel sponsored by GE Healthcare and NBC Universal and available in more than 1,400 hospitals around the country.

Falls continue to be the major reason for injury-related death, injury and hospital admission for older adults. According to the National Safety Council, the elderly are most at risk for falls, and 80% of those receiving fatal injury are over the age of 65.

“A fall can result in perpetual nursing home care or even death for the elderly, so the stakes are high,” said Dr. Michael Reineck, immediate past president of the Wisconsin Medical Society. “I don’t believe we can stop every accident from happening, but I know we can do a better job of protecting ourselves and loved ones by thinking ahead and taking some common-sense precautions to prevent falls."

The PSAs highlight the fact that fifty percent of elderly who fall and break a hip end up in nursing homes, and another thirty percent lose their independence, according to the National Safety Council. “While it's impossible to quantify that loss to the individual, there is a very real financial cost in terms of treatment. The largest part of Wisconsin's Medicaid budget goes to pay long-term care — and the greatest portion of that is for treating injuries related to falls,” said Reineck.

“We are pleased to have the opportunity to deliver this important information to patients and families through our Patient Channel,” said David Ross, manager of whole hospital education for GE Healthcare. “We don’t want the elderly to lose their independence due to an avoidable accident.”

The majority of falls among the elderly resulting in broken bones usually are related to everyday activities like climbing stairs, stepping out of the shower or using the bathroom. Here are some suggestions presented during the public service announcements, for the home and the hospital:

• In the kitchen, remove throw rugs and immediately clean up spills

• In the bedroom, get clutter off the floor and use nightlights along the way to the bathroom

• On stairs, install handrails on both sides and put non-slip treads on each bare wood step

• In the hospital, if your doctor recommends not getting out of bed yet, take the advice seriously

• Be aware of the possible effects of medications that may make you dizzy or weak

• You may even want to request a balance assessment. And finally, if you call for help, be patient

About GE Healthcare
GE Healthcare provides transformational medical technologies that are shaping a new age of patient care. Our expertise in medical imaging and information technologies, medical diagnostics, patient monitoring systems, drug discovery, and biopharmaceutical manufacturing technologies is helping clinicians around the world re-imagine new ways to predict, diagnose, inform and treat disease, so their patients can live their lives to the fullest.

GE Healthcare's broad range of products and services enable healthcare providers to better diagnose and treat cancer, heart disease, neurological diseases, and other conditions earlier. Our vision for the future is to enable a new "early health" model of care focused on earlier diagnosis, pre-symptomatic disease detection and disease prevention. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, GE Healthcare is a $15 billion unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE). Worldwide, GE Healthcare employs more than 43,000 people committed to serving healthcare professionals and their patients in more than 100 countries.

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About The Patient Channel
GE Healthcare launched The Patient Channel on April 30, 2002 with patient educational programming to help U.S. hospitals provide credible, accurate and up-to-date information to patients and their families, caregivers, and friends. The television programming is seen in patient rooms and waiting areas.

Programming on the channel covers a wide spectrum of topics including heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, arthritis, cancer, asthma, smoking cessation, parenting, health/wellness, and other healthcare topics. The goal of the channel is to educate patients and their families and to increase their awareness of medical issues and treatment options. The educational content is meant to stimulate communication with healthcare providers, improve the ability to make informed decisions, and promote a sense of empowerment at the time when accurate information is most needed.

• Over 40 educational programs
• Broadcast 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
• Spanish and English closed captioning available on all programs
• Provides reliable and focused patient education content
• Topics cover health and wellness topics selected with input from patient educators in our hospital network
• All content is developed according to the standards set and maintained by an external advisory board
• A web site for staff and patients, family and friends with applicable information before, during and after hospital stays

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