With increasing longevity in the Western world, Malta too is facing up to the reality of more and more people living well past their 70s. This healthy development is a reflection of improved living standards and the great strides in medical services available. Despite living longer, the aged face various problems in having a good quality of life and end up being unduly dependent on others.

Many of these problems are avoidable. It is of paramount importance that the elderly are made more aware of the importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle. Lack of regular and moderate exercise coupled with a poor diet will impact very negatively on their general health. Another threat to their well-being is the risk of falling. A fall for an elderly person is particularly harmful and quite often reduces their freedom and independence of movement for a prolonged period with all the complications, very often irreversible, that are set in train.

The health authorities are very aware of the devastating effects a fall has on the life of an independent elderly person and, in fact, a Falls Prevention Task Force has been set up to raise awareness about the serious difficulties elderly people are faced with following a fall and to launch initiatives that prevent elderly people from falling. This exercise necessitates the support of the wider community and involves not only health professionals in the community but also local councils and parishes.

There are very sound reasons for this increased commitment by the health authorities. For the elderly a fall can be an irreversible blow to their morale, to the extent that their sense of vulnerability and helplessness leads them to the point of giving up on life.

Very often, falls in one's home are the result of carelessness. The task force is therefore aiming to teach people how to minimise risks and be more alert to the possible avoidable dangers that would not have been the case in their younger years. The elderly are handicapped with slower reflexes and poorer eyesight and agility. Simple precautions, such as reduced clutter and better lighting at home, can make all the difference.

Matters get more complicated outside the home and are usually beyond their responsibility. Too often, inconveniences to the public, such as broken pavements, rubbish in the street and reckless driving, are infinitely more hazardous for the elderly who no longer have the physical ability and quickness to tackle these unacceptable situations.

The task force is determined to foster one's civic duty into being more aware of the unacceptable status of our surroundings that place the well-being of ourselves and our neighbour at risk. It wants to instil a sense of co-responsibility and motivate people to report hazards such as potholes and broken pavements and insist with the local authorities that these are repaired forthwith. Society hardly needs convincing to cooperate in such a cause.

The task force also expects that medical professionals will not just address the physical injuries of elderly that fall but also look into the causes so as to help the authorities in listing which are the major causes of falls and, thus, be in a better position to devise strategies to reduce this avoidable menace to the welfare of our elderly.

One hopes that the enthusiasm of the newly set up task force will be sustained and that the public will cooperate fully with this much-needed initiative.