Makes Me Want To Go On The Road And Share All This

Stop The Slip: Reducing Slips, Trips And Falls

Author: Thom Disch

Publisher: Pergrin Publishing, Lexington, Kentucky, 2017

I agreed to review this book for three reasons: my professional field is Human Resources and that includes Health & Safety; I had fallen a year ago on the sidewalk and cracked my head open; and none of us are getting any younger, especially our elderly parents.  I’m glad I read this book.

Author Thom Disch is a professional in every sense of the word when it comes to “slip trip, and fall injuries”. He practices and preaches everything he teaches us here regularly and has set up several key resources to help us reduce our slipping, tripping, and falling no matter where we are. In the process, he educates us with fact after fact from reliable statistical sources.

Disch divides his book into four major sections: Why We Fall; Where We Fall; The Business Side of Slips, Trips, and Falls; and Preventing Slips, Trips, and Falls.  Each section has numerous chapters, each with a key focus.  For example, in the first section (Why We Fall), he covers, among other things, age, footwear, weather, medications, alcohol, drugs, pets, and distracted walking.  In the second section (Where We Fall), he covers things like stairs, ladders, stools, poor lighting, bathrooms, kitchens, hallways, sidewalks, and ramps.  In the third section, he covers costs involved, falling at work, insurance, and the legal implications. Finally, he gives us most valuable and practical tips on how to prevent falling, slips, tripping both at home and at work – adding some great home and business audit checklists and much more.

The statistics alone are worth the price of the book. He has done considerable research for his readers. For example, while most falls are not life-threatening, they sent more than nine million people to the emergency room in 2014.  Are you building a house? If so, do you know how the stairs should be constructed? Do you know which type of shoe is the most dangerous to wear and why?  [I won’t tell you, but the book does, and much more.] And then of course there are his examples – real stories. And slides you can use in your own presentations.  In fact, I’d love to just hit the road with my own presentation based on Disch’s great work.  This information is needed in homes, in schools, in businesses,  and every senior’s group could benefit from a customized presentation relevant to its members.

I’ve only scratched the surface of what the author covers in a very practical and easy to understand way. Suffice it to say, I believe this book should be read by every business owner and every parent. And if you’re fortunate enough to have elderly parents, I suggest you read the book as well or if they’re still reading --- get them a copy.  It’s a highly needed and highly recommended read. It may just save you or someone you love from a serious and sometimes long-lasting injury, if not death.

Ken B. Godevenos, President, Accord Resolutions Services Inc., Toronto, Ontario, December 25, 2017, www.accordconsulting.com

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