Are They Safe At Home?

Do you have an elderly or vulnerable loved one living on their own? Maybe they live in a place that has been their home for many years and have no desire to move. In such a case, how can you make sure the home that they love so much does not put their safety at risk?

Going through the home and performing a safety assessment will be a good way to see areas that need improvement. To give you some ideas, here are a few common safety hazards for older ones:

Slips and falls cause many injuries among those with limited mobility, and the bathroom is one of the most at-risk areas. The bathroom must have plenty of anti-slip mats outside as well as inside the shower or tub. There should also be enough grab bars to prevent falls.

If the home has stairs, these should have handrails, preferably on both sides of the stairs. The area on and around the stairs should be well lit, and any carpeting on the stairs should be tightly fitted to prevent tripping.

Appliances with long cords present a huge tripping hazard and, if covered with a rug, can become a fire hazard as well. Make sure that electrical cords are not stretching across high traffic areas, this may require a repositioning of the furniture to allow corded appliances to be close to electrical outlets.