What to Do When Your Elderly Parent Falls at Home

When an elderly parent falls, do not move them until you’ve done a quick injury check: call their name, confirm responsiveness and normal breathing, and look for head or neck pain. If anything is concerning, call 911. If they are alert, breathing normally, and show no signs of serious injury, help them up using the 2-Minute Post-Fall Assessment below.

According to the CDC, more than one in four older adults falls each year. Falling once doubles your chances of falling again.

(This guide uses “parent” throughout, but the steps apply equally if you’re caring for an aging spouse, sibling, or other loved one.)

Here’s what to do.

David got the call at 7am on a Thursday. His mother had fallen in the bathroom and couldn’t get up. He didn’t know what to check first. Walking through this assessment now, before it happens, means you won’t have to figure it out in that moment.

The BeTended 2-Minute Post-Fall Assessment

When you find someone on the floor, the first two minutes matter most. Run through this assessment before helping them up or calling 911.

Print this section and keep it somewhere you can find quickly. Falls are disorienting moments. Having a checklist nearby helps you stay methodical when your instincts say to rush.

A: Consciousness (15 seconds)

• Call their name. Gently touch their hand.
• Are they awake and responding?
• If unresponsive or unconscious: Call 911 immediately. Do not move them.
• If responsive, say: “I’m here. Don’t try to move yet. I’m going to check on you.”

B: Breathing (15 seconds)

• Is breathing normal (not labored, gasping, or very shallow)?
• If breathing is abnormal: Call 911 immediately.

C: Head and Neck (30 seconds)

• Did they hit their head? Look for bumps, cuts, or blood. Ask them.
• Did they lose consciousness, even briefly? (They may not remember. Ask anyone nearby.)
• Is there neck or head pain?
• Any new confusion or disorientation that’s unusual for them?
• If yes to any of these: Call 911. Do not move them.

D: Hips and Back (30 seconds)

• Is there hip, lower back, or groin pain?
• Can they move both legs slowly on their own?
• Is one leg visibly shorter than the other, or rotated outward? (This is the classic sign of a hip fracture. It can be present even when pain is mild.)
• If yes to any of these: Call 911. Do not move them.

E: Arms and Shoulders (15 seconds)

• Wrist, shoulder, or arm pain? Common from bracing a fall.
• Can they move both arms slowly on their own?

The Decision:

☎ Call 911 if any item above raised a concern.

✅ You may help them up if ALL of the following are true:

• Fully conscious and as oriented as usual
• No head impact or loss of consciousness
• No hip, back, or leg pain
• Can move all four limbs on their own
• No visible deformity

When in doubt, call. You can cancel 911 after completing this assessment. You cannot undo a moved hip fracture.

Step 1: Don’t Move Them (Not Yet)

Your first instinct when you find your parent on the floor is going to be to help them up immediately. Resist it.

Falls can cause fractures and spinal injuries that aren’t visible and aren’t immediately painful, especially in older adults whose pain response may be slower. Moving someone with a hip fracture or spinal injury before you know what you’re dealing with can make the injury significantly worse.

Take a breath. Crouch down to their level. Make eye contact. Start talking.

Say: “I’m here. Don’t try to move. Let me check on you first.”

Step 2: Assess: Should You Call 911?

Go through this checklist before doing anything else:

Call 911 immediately if any of these are true:

• They hit their head (especially if they lost consciousness, even briefly)
• They’re in severe pain, especially in the hip, neck, or back
• They can’t bear any weight on one leg
• They’re confused or disoriented in a way that’s unusual for them
• They’re having trouble breathing
• There’s visible deformity (a limb is bent the wrong way)
• They can’t get up and have been on the floor for more than a few minutes

If none of those apply: You may be able to help them up yourself, but take your time. Ask them to move each limb slowly before attempting to get up. Ask where it hurts.

A good rule: if you’re not sure, call. EMS professionals can assess on-scene and will tell you if a hospital visit isn’t necessary. It’s far better to make the call and not need it than to help someone up with a broken hip.

Step 3: Helping Them Get Up Safely (If No Emergency)

If your parent is alert, not in severe pain, and can move all limbs, you can help them get up. Do this slowly.

1. Get something stable nearby (a sturdy chair or the couch). Bring it to them rather than moving them across the room.
2. Have them roll to their side first, then push up to hands and knees slowly.
3. Help them crawl to the chair or sturdy surface.
4. Have them place both hands on the seat of the chair and slowly push themselves up to a sitting position, then carefully stand.

Don’t try to lift them by pulling their arms up. That risks shoulder injury. If they can’t do the steps above, don’t force it. Call for help.

If you’re alone and they’re truly unable to get up, call 911. That’s what EMS is for.

Step 4: After the Fall: What to Check in the Next Hour

Even when a fall seems minor, things can emerge over the next few hours. After getting them settled:

Check for injuries that may not be immediately obvious:

• Hip pain or an inability to bear weight (can indicate a fracture even when there’s no visible injury)
• Wrist or shoulder pain (common from bracing a fall)
• Head pain, headache, nausea, or unusual drowsiness (signs of a head injury worth taking seriously)
• Bruising that develops over the next hour

Check their cognitive state:

• Are they as oriented as usual? Do they know where they are, what day it is?
• Are they acting differently than their baseline (more confused, more agitated, more withdrawn)?

Any change in cognition after a fall, especially a fall that involved a head impact, warrants a call to their doctor at minimum and an ER visit if the change is significant.

If your parent has a dementia diagnosis, our guide on understanding dementia behaviors explains how cognitive changes after a fall may present differently.

Watch for the “silent hip fracture” pattern. Some hip fractures present without dramatic pain. Signs: your parent can’t bear full weight on one side, they’re walking differently than before, or they report pain in the groin or thigh rather than the hip directly. This is a medical emergency even when it doesn’t feel like one.

Step 5: The 48 Hours After

Assuming there’s no emergency injury, here’s what to do in the two days after the fall:

Call their primary care doctor. Describe what happened. Ask whether your parent should come in. Falls (especially in someone with osteoporosis, blood thinners, or neurological conditions) often warrant a clinical review even when the fall itself seemed minor.

Ask about a falls risk assessment. Their doctor or a physical therapist can assess balance, gait, strength, and medication effects on fall risk. This isn’t just paperwork. It identifies specific, fixable causes.

Review medications. According to CDC’s STEADI fall prevention program, many falls are medication-related. Blood pressure medications, sleep aids, antihistamines, and certain antidepressants can cause dizziness or impaired balance. Ask the doctor to review the medication list with falls risk in mind. Our medication management guide can help you build a complete list before that conversation.

Walk through the house. Look at the environment where the fall happened and identify what contributed. Was it a loose rug? Poor lighting? Getting up too quickly from bed? Something slippery? See our Home Safety Checklist for Aging Parents for a room-by-room guide to common fall hazards.

Consider a medical alert device. If your parent lives alone or is at meaningful fall risk, a medical alert device (worn as a pendant or wristband) can summon help if they fall when no one is around. This is especially important if they spend time at home alone. It’s a harder conversation to have than it sounds, but a necessary one.

Step 6: Preventing the Next Fall

A fall is a signal that something in the environment or your parent’s health has changed. The most useful thing you can do after the immediate crisis is treat it like data.

Common preventable causes of falls:

• Loose rugs and cluttered pathways. The single most common environmental hazard. Remove them.
• Inadequate lighting. Especially at night between bedroom and bathroom. Nightlights and motion-activated lighting can prevent this.
• Poorly fitting footwear. Slippers without backs, shoes that are too big or too smooth-soled. This matters more than most people realize.
• Getting up too quickly. Orthostatic hypotension (blood pressure dropping when rising from lying or sitting) causes many falls. Teach your parent to sit at the edge before standing, and wait a few seconds.
• Medications. See above. This is one of the most common and most correctable causes.
• Muscle weakness. Physical therapy and even light resistance exercise can meaningfully improve strength and balance.
• Vision problems. Uncorrected vision is a fall risk. When was their last eye exam?

Falls are often framed as an inevitable part of aging. They’re not. Many are preventable with the right assessments and adjustments. Use this one as the prompt to make those changes.

The Emotional Side of This

If you’re reading this after a fall just happened, take a moment. This is frightening. The fear of losing your parent, or of not being there when it happens, is one of the most visceral parts of caregiving.

What you’re feeling is normal. And you handled it.

The goal from here isn’t to build a bubble around your parent’s life. It’s to identify what specifically contributed to this fall and address that, while supporting their independence as much as safely possible.

If you’re worried about their safety at home on a broader level (not just falls, but other indicators), read our guide on Signs Your Parent May Need More Help.

If your parent is resistant to accepting help or pushes back on care decisions, our guide on what to do when your aging parent refuses help covers practical approaches for those conversations.

Next step: Walk through the Home Safety Checklist for Aging Parents within the next 24 hours. Most environmental hazards take less than an afternoon to address.

Frequently Asked Questions

When should I call 911 vs. help my parent up myself after a fall?

Call 911 if your parent is unconscious, confused, cannot move a limb, or has severe pain in their hip or back, especially if they take blood thinners. If they seem alert and pain-free, you may be able to help them up carefully. Talk to their doctor in advance about a fall response plan.

What are the signs of a hip fracture after a fall?

The most common signs include severe pain in the hip or groin, an inability to bear weight on the leg, and the leg turning outward at an unusual angle. Your parent may also be unable to lift their leg while lying down. If you notice any of these signs, call 911 and do not try to move them.

My parent refuses to go to the ER after a fall. What should I do?

Stay calm and name your specific concern rather than pushing the overall decision. You might say: “I’m worried about a fracture because you can’t put weight on that leg.” If they still refuse, call their primary care doctor that day. Some injuries feel minor at first and worsen within hours.

How do I prevent my parent from falling again?

Start with a home safety assessment: clear throw rugs, install grab bars in the bathroom, and improve lighting in hallways and on stairs. Ask their doctor about fall risk factors, including current medications, vision problems, or balance issues. A physical therapist can also evaluate their gait and recommend targeted exercises to reduce fall risk.

What should I tell the doctor after my parent falls?

Tell the doctor what your parent was doing when they fell, whether they felt dizzy or lost consciousness beforehand, any pain they have now, and whether they hit their head. Bring a full medication list. Falls can signal an underlying medical change, so the doctor may want to review medications and run some tests.