A Better Blueprint: Preparing Your Home for Care

You’ve designed your home with comfort in mind, but put yourself in your loved one’s shoes – or walker or wheelchair. Is your home safe? Recognize hazards before they become detrimental to your loved one’s well-being. 

Quick tips for making your house safe for your loved one:

• Avoid stairs. Create one-level living if possible
• Clear clutter. Keep floors free of obstacles
• Remove loose carpets
• Place non-slip mats under throw rugs
• Install good lighting
• Create accessible shelving to avoid bending and reaching
• Set up baby monitors
• Modify the house layout for wheelchair accessibility, if necessary
• Install ramps/lift chairs, if necessary

Banish Bathroom Hazards

The bathroom – close quarters, lots of porcelain and slick, wet surfaces – presents its own set of hazards for anyone with physical limitations. Minimize challenges in your loved one’s bathroom area:

• Install sturdy grab bars, weighted for a person, for the toilet and the tub/shower
• Simplify the shower/tub entry, if possible
• Add a shower chair or bench that enables a person who cannot walk to take a shower
• Install an easy-to-turn shower knob (note: hot water can scald skin)
• Install handheld showerheads
• Switch from soap bars to pump bottles
• Add extra lighting
• Install an accessible toilet: molded plastic seat, adjustable seat or new model

 Secrets No One Told You About Family Caregiving