Identifying Pitfalls Key To Improving Senior Safety

Article submitted by Jaime Richard at Kindred Hospital
For more information, he can be reached at 899-1555.

Article submitted by Dennis Wade at Home Instead Senior Care.
For more information, he can be reached at 615-859-2380 or visit his website: www.homeinstead.com.

The first step in making your home safer is to identifying the safety pitfalls. In a survey, 5,300 professional CAREGivers identified the top safety problems that they've observed in their clients' homes.

When asked the question: Which of the following safety issues can you identify as being typical when you begin caring for an older client, here's what they noticed: Leading the list was loose area rugs, which create a tripping hazard, at 57.1 percent. Next on the list was no alert system for emergencies at 46 percent, followed by spoiled food in the refrigerator at 38.3 percent; lack of a grab bar in the bathtub or shower at 38.2 percent; and no walk-in shower at 37.8 percent.

Other safety issues they observed were cluttered living space making mobility difficult, steep steps, low supply of food, lack of nutritious food in the refrigerator, poor lighting and no telephone near the bed.

Hopefully, this list will help you take stock of the things around your home in need of attention. Some of the items are fairly easy to rectify, such as removing rugs. Others might require more work. If you need more extensive repairs in your home, call your local Area Agency on Aging to find remodelers who can help seniors in their homes. Or contact your local city/county government for a referral to trustworthy remodelers who can help seniors at a discounted price.

Sometimes it's beneficial to have someone around the house to assist with cleaning and help you correct safety hazards. Some agencies have their CAREGivers complete a comprehensive caregiving and safety curriculum and can identify safety issues in your home which may not be obvious, even to you.