Steps to Safety program

Prevent fire and falls at home

The NFPA Steps to Safety™ Prevent Fire and Falls at Home program pairs fire and EMS professionals with community partners to educate older adults about home fire and fall safety through group presentations, home visits, and the creation of a local resource network. Formerly titled Remembering When™ A Fire and Fall Prevention Program for Older Adults, the updated Steps to Safety™ (STS) program includes an online professional training curriculum and new digitized and print assets to support learning and behavior change in the older adult population. The approach is one that promotes independence, collaboration, engagement, and empowerment. Rooted in fire and behavioral science and sound educational principles, STS provides the framework and tools for fire and EMS professionals and their health and social service partners to impact their community to reduce incidence and injury from home fire and falls.

The Facts

• At age 65, older adults are twice as likely as the population at large to be killed or injured by fires. By age 75, that risk increases to three times that of the general population—and to four times by age 85.
• One in three older adults will experience a fall, sending an average 1 in 17 to the emergency department each year in the US.
• There was a 35% increase in invalid assists (also known as lift assists) from 2014 to 2017. Fire service now attend more falls than fires among older adults.* (*NFPA Applied Research)

Program Materials

Steps to Safety™ is centered around 16 key safety messages—eight fire prevention and eight fall prevention—developed by experts from national and local safety organizations across the US and Canada. The program is designed to be implemented by a coalition or community partnership comprising the local fire department, health and social service agencies, service clubs, social and religious organizations, retirement communities, and others to deliver key fire and fall messages and connect residents with resources. Coalition and partner organizations decide how to best approach the local senior population, leveraging local data, resources, and additional programs such as smoke alarm installation programs, lock box programs, grab bar installation services, and other wraparound services. 

Program materials are available for free download and distribution. Materials may be copied and distributed but not revised or altered. Not for commercial use.

Steps To Safety Message Cards

Fire Prevention Messages

Eight cards that focus on key fire prevention messages for older adults.

Download the cards

Fall Prevention Messages

Eight cards that focus on key fall prevention messages for older adults.

Download the cards

Group presentation materials

• Staying Safe at Home group presentation (PPT) 
• Trivia 1940s-1960s (PDF)
• Trivia 1970s-1990s (PDF)
• Create a prop box (PDF)
• Canada trivia questions (PDF)
• Pre/Post test ice breaker (PDF)

Home visit resources

• Home safety checklists for fire and falls
  • 8 1/2 x 11 Fall & Fire Prevention Checklists (PDF)
  • 11 x 17 Fire and Fall Prevention Checklists (fold in half to make a booklet) (PDF)
• Enhancing conversations (PDF)

Topical handouts and resources

• Fall messages (PDF)
• Fire messages (PDF)
• Home Fire Escape Planning  (PDF)
• Smoke Alarms for People who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (PDF)
• High-rise Apartments & Condominium Safety (PDF)
• Hoarding and Fire: Reducing the Risk (PDF)
• Older Adult Health and Safety Resource List (U.S.) (PDF)

Free interactive online learning (COMING SOON)

Learn the key fire and fall prevention messages and practice the skills you need to customize the delivery of the Steps to Safety™ program to fit the needs of your community in this free, three-hour online course. The course includes a personalized action planner, scenarios, job aids, and quizzes throughout, culminating in a series of 360-degree “home visits.” Whether you are new to Steps to Safety™ or a seasoned Remembering When™ professional, this course provides information, practice, and resources to get started. Course completion certificate provided.

Many thanks to our NFPA Older Adult Fire & Fall Prevention Advisory Committee members and NFPA staff who contributed to this project.

• Sato Ashida, Associate Professor
  University of Iowa, IA
• Anita Barksdale, Injury Prevention, Education and Outreach Coordinator
  Trinity Health Oakland, MI
• Janet Barnes, Volunteer
  Saskatoon Council on Aging
  Saskatoon Fire Department, Canada
• Stan Barnes, Consultant
  CRR Fire and Life Safety Consulting Specialist, Retired Farmington Hills Fire Department, MI
• Lisa Barrett, Fire Prevention Education and Online Communications Officer
  Emergency Management BC/Office of the Fire Commissioner
  Saanichton, BC Canada
• Kathleen Cameron, Sr. Director
  Center for Healthy Aging, National Council on Aging
• Ashby Green, Sgt. Fire Prevention
  Louisville Fire Department, KY
• Angie Gryder Gregg, Regional Director
  NC Baptist Aging Ministry
• Meredith Hawes, North Central Regional Director
  Regional Operations/NFPA, MI
• Dori Krahn, Community Relations Coordinator
  Saskatoon Fire Department, Canada
• Paula Levesque, Project Coordinator
  Public Education Division/NFPA, MA
• Sonita Oldfield-Carlson, Health Promotion & Safety Director
  Milestones Area Agency on Aging, IA
• BevVan Phillips, Occupational Therapist
  Key Complete Therapy, Home Modification, NE
• Kelly Ransdell, Regional Director
  South Central Region/NFPA
• Lori Stauffer, Public Education Officer
  Scottsdale Fire Department, AZ
• Tanja Tanner, Community Education Coordinator
  Goodyear Fire Department, AZ
• Rebekah Thurston, Public Information Officer
  Wilmington Fire Department, NC
• Andrea Vastis, Sr. Director
  Public Education/NFPA, MA