As you grow older, there is an undeniable link between the advancement of years and how supple and strong your body is – and even for the healthiest and most active elderly people, getting around the home can still be an issue. With this in mind, here are four key ways to adapt your home for the elderly.
Entering the Home
Firstly, you will want to turn your attention and focus on making sure that your older loved one is safe and comfortable when entering and exiting the home, as well as being able to easily answer the doorbell when it rings.
When you adapt your home for the elderly, installing a video entry phone, for example, would be an excellent idea as this will enable your loved one to first see who is calling and where applicable, either remotely unlock the door or else speak to them via the built-in microphone.
When you adapt your home for the elderly, you will naturally want your elderly loved one to safely navigate around each room of the home, and to ensure that this is the case, certain changes need to be made.
Ensure that every single room throughout the property is properly and brightly lit, with an excellent addition being motion sensor lighting which will trigger when your loved one enters a new room.
Another shrewd decision would be to widen the door frames and install handrails along the side of the walls to enable slower and safer walking and movement. When it comes to the stairs, installing a stairlift is an exceedingly effective (yet surprisingly affordable) option.
The Bathroom
More often than not, when older adults and elderly people experience trips and falls and resulting injuries in their own home, it is usually in the bathroom.
Logically, this is because this room is used sporadically throughout the day, so paying close attention to adapting and improving the space to better accommodate an older person is a good idea.
When you adapt your home for the elderly, investing in bathmats, which are gripped securely in place to the bath; long-handled sponges to make washing and bathing easier; and a safety plug to eradicate the risk of flooding the room will all serve to make an impressive difference.
Alternatively, you may instead want to start researching senior apartments in Kirksville and think about moving to a thriving and exceptional assisted living facility in your local area.
The Kitchen
The fourth and final main area of your home for consideration, when you adapt your home for the elderly, is the kitchen.
In this room, more than making structural changes, you should instead focus on investing in smaller items of equipment and cooking aids which can make a huge difference to the level of independence your loved one will be afforded.
A food and drinks trolley with handles and sturdy wheels can make transporting food substantially easier, as well as cutlery with wider handles, two-handled mugs and cups, and jar and bottle openers. You could also purchase a kettle tipper which will mean your loved one will be able to easily fill and tip the kettle when they fancy a hot drink.
