What to Do When Someone Has a Fall

Stop and Check for Danger Before You Rush In

When someone goes down, your instinct is to get to them fast. That instinct is good, but take two seconds first. You are no help to anyone as a second casualty, and in a small business the person on the floor may be the only other trained first aider on site.

Look around before you move. Common culprits in UK workplaces include wet floors near kitchenettes and washrooms, trailing cables, spilled stock in a storeroom, loose stair nosings, and vehicles reversing in a yard or car park. If machinery is still running, switch it off if you can do so safely. If a shelf or stack looks unstable, keep others back. Shout for help, send someone to fetch the first aid kit, and ask another colleague to wait by the entrance to guide the ambulance crew in.

Make the area safe or move people away from it — but do not move the casualty yet.

Talk to Them Before You Touch Them

Kneel or crouch down to their level, introduce yourself and stay calm. Tone matters more than words here: a panicky rescuer makes a frightened person worse.

Ask simple questions. What happened? Where does it hurt? Can they feel you touching their hands and feet? Can they wiggle their fingers and toes?

Then reassure them and keep them warm. A coat, a fleece, or a foil blanket from the first aid kit helps, because shock can make anyone chilled even indoors. Do not give them food or drink — if they later need surgery, an empty stomach matters, and swallowing is risky if they become drowsy.

Never haul someone up by the arms or let a well-meaning colleague do it. A fall that looks harmless can hide a fracture, and a yank on a broken limb is agony.

When to Call 999

Ring for an ambulance, or send someone to do it while you stay with the casualty, if you suspect a head injury, a broken bone or a spinal injury.

• Head injury signs: any blow to the head followed by loss of consciousness, confusion, repeated vomiting, unusual drowsiness, a severe headache, a seizure, clear fluid or blood from the ear or nose, or pupils of different sizes.
• Broken bone signs: an obviously deformed limb, bone visible through the skin, an inability to bear weight, severe pain, or numbness and tingling beyond the injury.
• Spinal injury signs: neck or back pain after the fall, tingling or weakness in the arms or legs, or loss of bladder control.
• Other red flags: they are unresponsive, struggling to breathe, bleeding heavily, or you cannot rouse them properly.

While you wait, keep them still. Support the head and neck with your hands or rolled clothing and tell them not to move. Do not straighten a limb, do not remove a cycle helmet, and do not sit them up. If they are unconscious but breathing and you have no reason to suspect a spinal injury, place them in the recovery position and monitor their breathing until help arrives.

If It Is a Bump, Bruise or Sprain

Not every fall needs an ambulance. If the person is alert, in no severe pain and can move normally, help them up slowly — let them do the work, with you steadying them. Sit them down somewhere quiet and check them over properly.

For a sprain or strain, remember rest, ice, comfort and elevation: an ice pack wrapped in a cloth for no more than 20 minutes, the limb raised, and no heroics. Paracetamol or ibuprofen from the kit is fine if they want it and have no reason to avoid it.

One important warning: after any bang on the head, do not send someone home alone to sleep it off. Symptoms can appear hours later. Advise them to be checked by a GP, urgent care or A&E, and make sure a friend or family member stays with them for the next 24 hours. If in doubt, get them seen.

Record It, Report It, Learn From It

Every fall, however minor, goes in the accident book or your accident recording system that day. Note who was involved, the time, the exact location, what happened, the injuries, any treatment given, and the names of witnesses. Memory fades fast, and a clear record protects both the employee and the business.

Some incidents must be reported to the Health and Safety Executive under RIDDOR. These include fractures other than to fingers, thumbs or toes, loss of consciousness caused by a head injury, and any injury that keeps someone off their normal duties for more than seven days. Over-seven-day injuries must be reported within 15 days of the accident. When you are unsure, record it anyway and check the rules.

Finally, walk the route the person took. Was the lighting poor? Was something left in a walkway? Was the floor wet with no sign? Fix what you find, update your risk assessment, and tell the team what changed. A fall that nobody investigates is a fall waiting to happen again.