Rain, snow, and strong winds predicted in the next couple days can make for some dangerous conditions for those venturing outside in Washington County.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one out of every five falls causes an injury, such as broken bones or a head injury. Eric Turner of JET Physical Therapy in Washington says if you have to go outside to make sure you’re wearing shoes with good traction, and to use a slower and wider gait. If you do fall, Turner urges not to get up right away or let others help you up immediately, as this can cause further injury. He shares what to do after assessing your injury status, “Being careful about putting weight on one of our legs if we are experiencing some pain in the ankle or knee or the hip. Just kind of test that out just a little bit in a slow kind of manner, making sure that it is appropriate to move and walk again, knowing whether or not that we’re safe to continue to move independently or maybe we need to call on some help because we’re not sure of what the status is and want to make sure that we’re not creating a more significant issue.”

If you hit your head during a fall and feel nauseous or in a fog afterwards, or have difficulty moving joints, Turner advises to seek medical attention. He also encourages residents to analyze their falling incident to reflect on what they were doing and what they could have done differently to avoid repeating those falls in the future.