Someone recently told me that there were more than a million people a year who suffer from serious trip and fall injuries in the US. That number seemed almost unbelievably huge, but when I looked it up, it turns out that it’s true! According to the Center for Disease Control, not only do more than a million people per year experience a serious slip, trip or fall injury, but more than 17,000 Americans a year actually die from trips and falls!
I had no idea! And not only are people dying, many more are experiencing serous and life changing injuries! Between 20% and 30% of people who fall will end up with brain injuries, broken bones or hip fractures that will permanently impair their mobility and quality of life. In fact, according to the CDC, for people over age 25, the most common cause of brain injuries is a serious fall. That’s incredible and horrible!
Home and business owners should definitely take their walking surfaces seriously! When workers or visitors get injured, the results can be catastrophic for them, and also cost some serious money. Insurance payments for slip, trip, and fall injuries range in average from $10,000-$50,000. According to the CDC, a single serious slip and fall injury can result in an average range of $30,00-$40,000 in hospital costs. In fact, as a society, we’re paying more than 34 billion dollars a year on the costs associated with fall injuries!
I can’t help but think that A-1 Concrete Leveling Buffalo can help. While not all trip and fall injuries are caused by uneven walking surfaces, many are. And that’s where we come in. We can level concrete walking surfaces, floors, paths, sidewalks, shop floors and industrial factory floors using our patented technology and expert crews. In fact, we can make concrete surfaces as level as they were originally, virtually eliminating tripping hazards. And we can also help with ice accumulation via leveling outside concrete areas as well. Sometimes uneven or dropped concrete can accumulate water that freezes into ice in the winter, meaning that paths and walkways end up way more slippery than they would be if they were level.
I have to admit that I don’t normally spend my day looking at CDC statistics, but I’m glad I gave it some of my time this weekend. I really had no idea of the true extent of what seems like almost an epidemic of trips, slips, and falls. Be careful out there! And, if you think you have some uneven concrete surfaces that we might be able to help with, give us a call and we’ll get to work making your workplace or home more safe for everyone.