Injury Prevention

Community Outreach/Injury Prevention Programs

Injuries are a leading cause of death and disability in the U.S., responsible for over 240,000 deaths and over 25 million emergency department visits each year. 

Injuries affect everyone regardless of age, race, or economic status. Effective injury prevention programs, including community outreach and prevention initiatives, play a vital role in keeping our neighborhoods safe. By educating and empowering individuals, we can reduce risks, save lives, and build stronger, healthier communities together.

At the heart of prevention is education. Through community outreach, public awareness, we can stop injuries before they happen.

To prevent injuries, it is necessary to have information about the factors that contribute to their occurrence:

• An injury is any unintentional or intentional damage to the body
• Major trauma can potentially lead to serious outcomes
• Injury is the fifth leading cause of death in all age groups. It is the leading cause of death in ages 1-42
• Most common fatal mechanisms of injury are falls, motor vehicle accidents and firearms.
• Falls are the leading mechanism of injury and death in the elderly; in the older adult population of Nassau County, 88% of all injury hospitalizations were due to falls
• Males have a higher rate of injury death in all ages

We know that Prevention Saves Lives

Injuries are so common that we often just accept them as part of life, but they can be prevented, and their consequences reduced. We know prevention works. For example:

• Seatbelts have saved an estimated 255,000 lives between 1975 and 2008
• Child safety seats, when correctly installed and used, reduce the risk of death by 71% for infants and 54% for toddlers aged 1-4 years. 
• Studies in the U.S. and elsewhere have shown that bike riders wearing helmets are less likely to suffer brain injuries than those who don’t
• Sobriety checkpoints are proven effective in reducing alcohol-related crashes and deaths by approximately 17-25%
• Tai Chi, Stepping On and other exercise programs for older adults have been shown to reduce falls by as much as half among participants.

Mount Sinai South Nassau’s Trauma Center is:

• Following injury trends in Nassau County
• Identifying priority areas for injury prevention based on local data
• Planning, implementing, and evaluating prevention programs that meet the needs of the community
• Education for medical professionals and the community
• Working with local, state and national organizations
  

The Trauma Center is working to reduce these common types of injuries by offering FREE community programs to increase awareness and provide safety education.

Concussion/TBI management

Student athlete/parent/coach/school faculty sports safety information sessions.

• Learn the signs and symptoms of concussion
• When to seek treatment
• Post-concussion follow-up with a concussion management specialist at our SMART center ( Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation Therapy Center)
• Visit the CDC – Concussion Website for more information
  
• Now offering FREE baseline testing via ImPACT. Post-concussive ImPACT testing is also offered at our SMART Center, along with follow-up care prior to ‘return-to-learn’ and/or ‘return-to-play.’ Visit the ImPACT website for more information.
  

Preventing Falls in Older Adults

• Learn if you are at risk and what you can do to prevent falls
• Review Home Health and Safety topics
• Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention (8-week program)
• Stepping On (7-week program)
• Informational programs for senior groups
• Visit the CDC – Falls Website for more information
  

Injury Prevention Classes

Tai Chi and Stepping On are both evidence-based programs to help participants reduce their risk of falling by up to 50%. Call our Injury Prevention Coordinator at (516) 442-5766 for more information and/or to register for future classes!

Tai Chi and Stepping On Classes
(In Hospital Events calendar, search Tai Chi or Stepping On for future dates.) 

Stop the Bleed

Stop the Bleed is a national program that was developed after the Sandy Hook shooting in Connecticut. As a result, many national groups such as the Hartford Consensus, US Military, US EMT Association and the American College of Surgeons came together under a White House initiative and formed Stop the Bleed. The program is about an hour long, incorporating a PowerPoint as well as hands-on practice with tourniquets and packing wounds, and holding firm, continuous pressure. The program is designed for all laypersons to be able to learn how to recognize life-threatening bleeding and to immediately respond using either a tourniquet and/or packing a wound and holding continuous pressure until EMS arrives. The training is free, and everyone receives a certificate at the end.  It is a life skill that we are encouraging all people to learn to be prepared for, just as if one were trained in CPR or the Heimlich Maneuver.

The desire for this program to be presented in schools and community settings is growing tremendously. Please contact Francene Stauber to set up a FREE one-hour training.

Learn More

Programs can be tailored to meet the needs of your group or organization. Please contact us directly to schedule one of the above programs or discuss additional programs that will fit your need. For more information, please contact our Injury Prevention Coordinator:

Francene Stauber, PT, DPT
Injury Prevention Outreach Coordinator
516-632-2834
francene.stauber@mountsinai.org

Dr. Francene Stauber, PT, DPT, Graduated Stonybrook University in 1977 with a BS in Physical Therapy and with a Doctoral Degree in Physical Therapy and Healthcare Management from Boston University in 2008. She has been affiliated with Mount Sinai South Nassau since 1989 as a Home Care Physical Therapist and Certified Fall Prevention Specialist, Rehab Supervisor of South Nassau Home Care and Associate Director of Mount Sinai at Home.
  
In 2023, she transferred to the Trauma Department as the Injury Prevention, Community Outreach Coordinator and Fragility Hip Fracture Liaison, becoming a certified trainer for Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention, the Stepping- On Fall Risk Reduction Program and the Otago Balance and Strength Program.  In this new position she has enjoyed the opportunity to provide education in the areas of Bone Health, Fall Prevention, Strength and Balance  Exercise Training, Stop the Bleed, Narcan Training, and Bicycle/ Helmet and Water Safety to the communities served by Mount Sinai South Nassau.  

Mount Sinai South Nassau's Trauma Services uses data to identify injury trends in Nassau county and develop targeted prevention programs.