Senior Home Care: Ensuring a Safe Living Space

Every year, many elderly Americans injure themselves in or around their homes, and this is especially true for senior loved ones, who are at risk of falling. According to the National Safety Council, falls are the leading cause of injury deaths to individuals age 65 and older.  To ensure the proper care for our father, we knew some changes needed to be made.  He is 90, unsteady, and we wanted to make certain he felt independent, but was provided with a safe environment.

Here are eight changes we have made thus far:

 1.  Clothing:  We stopped him from wearing a long bathrobe.  Nothing drags on the floor or near him, which could add to the likelihood of his falling.

2.  Foot Wear:  His slippers are not loose and sloppy.  He has non-skid soles and the slippers fit well.

3.  Grab Bars:  We had them installed in the bathroom near the shower and replaced the towel rod in the bathroom since that would be grabbed by instinct if Dad lost is balance.  A grab handle is now by the front door, which makes climbing the one entry step easier.

4.  Throw Rugs:  All of the throw rugs were removed. They are NOT allowed in Dad’s home. Throw rugs are one of the biggest hazards in a home and lead to many falls!! They might look great, but MUST be removed for safety sakes.

5.  Chair Lift:  A lift chair is now Dad’s chair of choice.  Dad’s MD wrote a prescription for the chair because of his unsteadiness and weakness from his hip replacement from 2 years ago.  Medicare covered 80 percent of the cost of the chair motor.  We were left with only a small amount to cover the rest of the chair cost.

6.  Canes:  We bought four canes so that if Dad misplaced one, there were many more to choose from, and he is never without one.  At first, he fought using a cane for quite a while and still is not happy about it but my sister and I kept encouraging him by repeating to him that we just want him to be safe.  He does use the cane now—everyday!  I bought three nice canes from Walgreens for $20 each.  Another cane came from Medco.com which has a lot of cane options on their website.

7. Dark Areas:  The hallway to Dad’s bedroom is dark, so we added a higher wattage light fixture and a nightlight that triggers with any movement.  Even during the afternoon or early morning, this nightlight comes on and helps him to see better when he travels down the hall.

8.  Caregiver:  Dad’s caregiver is with him during the weekdays to make sure that he has a well-balanced lunch and is supervised.  She keeps him company and works hard to keep him engaged and SAFE!

We are blessed that Dad has not fallen or has not been hospitalized with a fractured hip or head injury.  We keep thinking and rethinking safety for our elderly parent.  Anything to keep our senior loved ones safe is worth trying. Keep at it!!

Lori J. Holmgren MSN, RN
Director, Visiting Angels