Checklist for uncomplicated Senior security

Safety issues are all the time a concern in the home of a senior and also something for you to think about if you are finding for a seclusion home. Being implicated with safety in your parent's home is like being a detective. If you see mom practically trip over a throw rug then you will either tack that rug down or immediately remove it. It is the less unavoidable areas that can rise up and bite us.

If there is a small raised transition from the carpeting to the tile that she has not had a qoute navigating but might have a qoute with in the hereafter then this is something you need to take care of before the trip and fall. Be proactive you will gain great piece of mind. So here are some areas which you might take a look at.

Stair Lift Story

Design-Remodel-Move

There are a few options available to you if your aging parents are still in their two story home that you grew up in. This area needs to be approached with caution, love and understanding.

• Option #1 Sell the house homestead and move them to a single story house. Good idea but in this real estate shop it could be problematic to get that done. Have you spoken to the folks about moving? Did they write back with joy and laughter and applause? You might want to read Seven Reasons Why Seniors Want to Stay Home first for some hints on how they feel about moving.
• Option #2 Move their living quarters downstairs. If the house is a large house home then most likely they will have a den or a formal living room down stairs which could easily be adapted to their bedroom. However, most downstairs baths are just a powder room so some expansion of that might be necessary.
• Option #3 install a stair lift. These stair lifts are easily installed and contribute unblemished safety for your parents. One thing to be unavoidable of is that the lift will run on battery power if there is an electrical outage in the home. If you are not mechanically inclined then you might want to have someone else install it.

The Bathroom

You take water and tile and mix in poor balance and eyesight and you have an area primed for falls. Stepping into a tub is not a good idea for an elderly someone so the first thing to look at is replacing the tub.

• Whether you look at one of those step in tubs or a tub shower combo that is a step in you will growth your safety quotient considerably. If the unit you chose doesn't have a molded in seat then use a stand alone one. The elderly like to sit and use the hand wand when showering.
• Also look at strategically settled grab bars. The ones that suction onto the wall have gotten good but I don't know if I would totally trust them. If you are refitting the tub with a walk in tub shower combo then now would be the time to install 2x4 blocking in the wall that the grab bars could be screwed into.
• All faucets should be the lever type and not the knob. The elderly commonly have lost gripping strength and have arthritis as well and cannot grip the faucet hard adequate to turn it off. By doing this you will cut the risk of serious scalding accidents.
• You should either replace the toilet with a handicapped height one or you can get one of those raised toilet seats. either place a grab bar within reach of someone on the toilet or you can get a frame that kind of sits over the toilet which allows the someone to use some arm muscles instead of weak leg and hip muscles.
• If the bathroom has dual vanities then look at converting one of them to wheel chair access. And don't forget to widen the door to at least 36" again for wheel chair and walker access.
• If potential convert the doorways to pocket doors; this will gain you a lot of interior space.

The Kitchen

So many dangers here and you should look at safety in the kitchen for your parent as your parent looked at safety in the kitchen when you were little.

• Don't put anything heavy or bulky in overhead cabinets. Just as they are sliding a pot onto an upper shelf their strength gives out and the pot comes crashing down.
• If the stove has burner controls on the back panel replace the stove. You don't want mom reaching over a boiling pot to turn down the burner.
• Here is a no brainer: no towels hanging over or close to the stove.
• To go along with the above tip make sure there is a working fire extinguisher with in reach.
• The elderly reach a point where they no longer easily cook they just nuke. You easily don't need a microwave with all the bells and whistles just one that will defrost, cook and reheat. Think simplicity here and make sure the numbers are large and readable.
• As in the bathroom all faucets should be lever type.

Other Rooms

• Doors should be refitted to the lever type of cope for the same intuit that faucets are lever type.
• Look for any throw rugs and get rid of them.
• Try not to use extension cords at all but if they must be used make sure that they will not pose a trip hazard.
• Look at direction of travel and pathways. If the path from the couch to the kitchen or bathroom has a table and chairs encroaching into the path then rearrange the furniture so that the path is straight. If mom bumps into a table this could just be adequate to cause a fall.
• In the laundry room use a lower cabinet for the cleaning items instead of the cabinets over the washer dryer.

Lighting

Lighting and adequate of it should not be overlooked. Every room that mom goes into or through should be inspected for adequate lighting. Please keep in mind that adequate light for you may not be adequate for mom. There should be general lighting as well as task lighting.

• Every room that has two entrances should have a three way light switch installed at each entrance. You could try petition sensor lighting but it has been my sense that a someone is halfway into the room before the light comes on.
• Lighting in the kitchen should be of both the general and task and again have adequate wattage so that mom can see oven/microwave controls and read instructions on boxes.
• Use plug in night lights in bathrooms, bedrooms, hallways and any other location where mom might travel after dark. They have night lights that are flat against the wall and only come on after dark but contribute adequate illumination to see if there is an obstacle in the way.

Garage

• If mom is still driving then you should seek her car for any new dents, scratches or paint marks. This could indicate that she is loosing depth perception and potential loss of peripheral vision. It may be time to have a talk with her about surrendering the car keys. But you good have a plan as to how to approach this sensitive issue and what solutions you have in mind.
• Make sure there is ample room for the car as well as for her getting into and out of the car. This might mean getting rid of some stuff in stable to allow this.
• If there is a power outage then the stable door opener won't operate. Rig a light weight rope with a cope to the existing overhead door and string it to the side of the stable out of the way. Then see if mom is capable of releasing the door and raising it. You might have to get a stable door technician out there to adjust the spring tension on the doors.
• I have seen many senior's cars where the trunk and the back bumper are damaged from the stable door hitting it. One clarification is to place the car in the stable where it should be and hang a tennis ball from the ceiling to where it makes sense with the windshield in front of the driver. This however takes the focus off of where the car is going to the tennis ball. You might try attaching a 2x4 to the floor so that mom drives gently into the stable and feels the 2x4.

Exterior

• You need to continually be considering pathways colse to the house for trip hazards. Vines that have grown over a path, a flagstone path that was once fine but now is uneven or even a hose that has been left out can be perilous to the someone who has petite visual acuity.
• If mom can still do a few stairs make sure a sturdy railing is there for support. If not then a ramp should be installed. Consult with your local part of the Ada for guidelines.
• Install a safety type screen door on the front door so that she can still be get when opening the door to strangers.
• Sliding doors out to the patio should have a zero threshold. This will prevent tripping now and accommodate a walker, wheelchair or scooter later. This can be terminated by the installation of a small ramp.

Personal

• Telephone communications are foremost to mom, either it is calling out or receiving calls from family. There are cheap phone systems available that have manifold cordless hand sets. If you have adequate of these in the rooms that she lives in together with the bathroom then the phone will be no more then a few steps away when it rings.
• Have a talk with mom about not responding to telephone solicitations for money and not to open the safety door to someone she does not know.
• There are personal alarm systems that sense urgency services when a button is pressed. This can be a pendant or a wrist type device. Some of these systems can be costly and have a monthly subscription fee as well. One that we have sense with is the Guardian Alert law which has no monthly subscription and it can be programmed to call a house member, a neighbor or 911 in any order or just 911. Mom can talk directly to the someone on the other side through the gadget she is wearing. It's pretty cool.

This list seems like a lot but as you begin to check things off you will find that you are becoming more unavoidable that mom is safe in the home that she wants to stay in.

Checklist for uncomplicated Senior security