Living Well at Home UKClear, practical guidance for later life
Urgent health guide

By Does Your Duck Quack

What to do after a fall: first steps and recovery

What to do after a fall depends on injury and symptoms: keep the person safe, call urgent help when needed and arrange follow-up.

Checked: 13 October 2026 · Next review: 13 April 2027 · Applies to: UK, with nation notes
How this guide was prepared

Purpose: urgent guidance · Level: detailed

Checked by: Does Your Duck Quack. Sources are linked below; seek professional advice for individual circumstances.

The short answer

What to do first

What to do after a fall depends on injury and symptoms: keep the person safe, call urgent help when needed and arrange follow-up.

Start here: Stay calm, introduce yourself and ask whether the person can hear and answer you. Check for severe pain, bleeding, a head impact, loss of consciousness, unusual limb position, new weakness, speech change or breathing trouble. If there may be a serious injury or the person is not responding normally, call 999 and explain exactly what happened and when. Do not move them unless there is immediate danger, such as fire. Follow the call handler’s instructions, keep them warm and comfortable, and do not give food, drink or medicines if they are drowsy or may need urgent treatment.

Do not wait: Call 999 if the person is seriously injured, may have injured their head, back, neck or hip, is unconscious, cannot be woken, has new stroke signs, severe breathing difficulty or is in immediate danger. Do not try to lift or move them if a serious injury is possible. Follow the emergency call handler’s instructions.

Visual guides

See the decision at a glance

After a fall: pause before moving
  1. 1. CheckAsk what hurts. Look for bleeding, head injury, severe pain, weakness or an unusual limb position.
  2. 2. CallCall 999 for serious injury, severe symptoms or immediate danger. Do not move them if a serious injury is possible.
  3. 3. SupportKeep them warm and comfortable. If they cannot get up, call for help—do not attempt an unsafe manual lift.
  4. 4. Follow upRecord what happened and arrange assessment, especially after repeated or unexplained falls.
Getting up only when there is no sign of injuryThe person should lead and stop if there is pain or difficulty. Never pull their arms.
  1. Roll and pauseRoll onto one side, then move onto hands and knees if comfortable.
  2. Use stable furnitureMove towards a sturdy chair that will not slide.
  3. Rise in stagesPlace both hands on the chair, bring one foot forward, then rise slowly and turn to sit.
  4. Cannot get up?Stay warm and call for help. Do not keep trying or accept an unsafe lift.
Head injury: warning signs after a fall
  1. Call 999For unconsciousness, a seizure, severe weakness, difficulty waking or another immediate danger.
  2. Get urgent adviceFor repeated vomiting, increasing confusion, worsening headache, memory problems or unusual behaviour.
  3. Mention medicinesTell the clinician if the person takes anticoagulants or other blood-thinning medicines.
Fear-of-falling recovery pathway
  1. Talk about the fearRecord when confidence changed, any falls or near falls, and activities now being avoided.
  2. Check contributing factorsAsk about balance, strength, vision, feet, medicines, dizziness and hazards at home.
  3. Rebuild graduallyAgree small, meaningful activities with suitable professional support rather than avoiding all movement.
  4. Review progressTrack confidence and function as well as falls, and adjust the plan if symptoms or ability change.

Scope of this guide

This guide helps you understand the options and questions to ask. It is not personal medical, legal or financial advice. Check the official sources for your nation and seek qualified help for high-stakes decisions.

If someone may be in immediate danger

Call 999 for a life-threatening emergency. For an urgent problem that is not clearly life-threatening, use the official NHS urgent-care route for the UK nation you are in. Have the address, symptoms, onset time, medicines and allergies ready.

Who this guide is for

For someone who has fallen, and the family member, friend or unpaid carer they choose to involve in immediate help, assessment and recovery planning.

What to do after a fall starts with checking whether the person is injured, in pain or unusually confused; do not rush to lift them. Call 999 for serious injury, loss of consciousness or immediate danger. If there is no apparent injury, help them get comfortable and seek advice if they cannot rise safely or symptoms develop.

What to do now

1. Pause, check and get emergency help when needed

Stay calm, introduce yourself and ask whether the person can hear and answer you. Check for severe pain, bleeding, a head impact, loss of consciousness, unusual limb position, new weakness, speech change or breathing trouble. If there may be a serious injury or the person is not responding normally, call 999 and explain exactly what happened and when. Do not move them unless there is immediate danger, such as fire. Follow the call handler’s instructions, keep them warm and comfortable, and do not give food, drink or medicines if they are drowsy or may need urgent treatment.

2. If there is no obvious serious injury, agree a safe next move

Do not pull someone up by their arms or attempt a manual lift unless you have been trained and it is safe. Ask whether they feel pain, dizziness, nausea or new weakness before changing position. If they can move safely, let them take their time and use a stable chair or their usual aid only if that is part of a safe plan. If they cannot get up, are very cold, frightened, injured or have been on the floor for a while, call for help. Keep checking comfort and alertness while you wait; avoid leaving them alone if you can safely stay.

3. Record what happened while details are fresh

Write down the time, place, what the person was doing, what they remember, whether their head struck anything, how long they were on the floor and what symptoms followed. Note witnesses, recent illness, food and drink, footwear, lighting, walking aids and any changes to medicines. Do not treat a possible cause as certain: a loose rug, for example, may matter but does not rule out illness or a medicine effect. This short record can help a clinician or falls practitioner identify patterns and avoid asking the person to reconstruct a stressful event repeatedly.

4. Arrange assessment and follow-up

Seek clinical advice after an injury, head impact, loss of consciousness, new pain, dizziness, repeated falls or a change in confidence or mobility. Explain whether symptoms are new and how they compare with the person’s usual health. Ask about a falls assessment, medicine review, eyesight, footwear, balance, strength, blood pressure, pain and home hazards as relevant. If the person was seen in hospital, ask who will arrange follow-up and how to contact them if symptoms worsen. A fall that seems minor can still deserve review, particularly when the reason is unclear or it has happened more than once.

5. Family members: help without taking over

Ask the person what they want help with today, what they would like to regain and who they want involved. Offer choices such as making a call together, writing down questions or accompanying them to an appointment. Avoid insisting on an alarm, removing belongings or changing routines without discussion unless an immediate risk requires action. Agree specific tasks and a check-in time, then revisit the plan with the person. If memory or communication is affected, use their preferred way of communicating and include them in each decision as far as possible.

6. Make the next few days manageable

After hospital or clinical review, check that the person understands any advice, new medicines, exercises, mobility aid instructions and follow-up arrangements. Ask what symptoms should trigger another call and which number to use. Walk through the route to the toilet, bed and kitchen together if the person wants this; improve lighting or move a trip hazard only with agreement. Check that footwear fits and aids are within reach. A physiotherapist, occupational therapist, falls service or council may advise on strength, balance or adaptations. Keep the person’s everyday goals in view rather than making every activity about avoiding risk.

7. Review patterns and agree a longer-term plan

If a further fall occurs, update the record and seek review rather than assuming the same explanation. Ask the GP or local falls service who coordinates care and when the plan will be reviewed. Discuss practical issues such as getting help after a fall, access for responders, a personal alarm, medication concerns and transport to appointments. These choices depend on the person’s preferences, home and available local services. A plan should say who will do what, what happens if the first contact is unavailable and how the person can change their mind.

Warning signs and checks

Common questions

Should I move someone who has fallen?

Do not move them if a serious injury may have happened, especially after a head, back, neck or hip injury, or if they are unconscious or in severe pain. Call 999 and follow the call handler’s advice. If there is no serious injury, ask about pain and dizziness and do not attempt a lift unless you know it is safe. If they cannot get up, call for help and keep them warm.

When should I call 999 after a fall?

The NHS says “Call 999 if:” you or someone else has fallen and “may have injured the head, back, neck or hip” or “cannot get up”. Keep the person comfortable and warm while you arrange help, and do not try to lift them yourself. Tell the call handler where you are, whether the person can respond and what happened. Follow their instructions while waiting. NHS 111 is the advice route if a person who has fallen may be in pain, injured or unwell.

Does every fall need a GP or falls-service review?

Not every fall leads to the same assessment, but a review is sensible after an injury, head impact, repeated falls, unexplained dizziness or a loss of confidence. A clinician can consider health, medicines, strength, balance, vision and the home together. Ask who will coordinate follow-up and what to do if symptoms change.

How can I help a parent after a fall without taking over?

First check what they want and whether urgent help is needed. Offer practical choices, such as writing down the event, arranging an appointment together or checking a route through the home. Agree any changes and review them later. Avoid treating one fall as proof that the person cannot make decisions or manage familiar activities.

Should I try to get up after a fall?

Only try to rise if you have checked for injury and feel able to do so. The NHS advises taking time, using something stable for support and resting afterwards. If you cannot get up, use a reachable phone or alarm to obtain help and keep warm. Someone assisting should not attempt to lift you themselves. The emergency instruction includes “Call 999 if:” someone who has fallen “cannot get up”. If pain, injury or illness is possible, seek urgent advice rather than testing your strength repeatedly.

Differences across the UK

Urgent-care phone services, ambulance alternatives, falls teams, physiotherapy and community response differ across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and by locality. For emergencies use 999. For a non-emergency review, contact the person’s GP or the local health service and ask which falls pathway serves their address. Hospital follow-up and council equipment or adaptation routes are arranged under each nation’s system; ask who owns the referral and how to chase it.

When to get urgent help

Call 999 if the person is seriously injured, may have injured their head, back, neck or hip, is unconscious, cannot be woken, has new stroke signs, severe breathing difficulty or is in immediate danger. Do not try to lift or move them if a serious injury is possible. Follow the emergency call handler’s instructions.

Primary sources

The publisher checked this guide against the 7 official sources below. This is an editorial source check, not approval by a clinician, lawyer or benefits adviser.

Next useful step

After a fall

Check for injury, arrange review, rebuild confidence and make the home work better.

Continue with: Preventing falls around the home: practical changes that help

Editorial note: By Does Your Duck Quack.