Aging in Place: Home Renovations to Consider

Welcome back to our Aging in Place blog series. Last month we covered how to create a caregiver plan. We hope that this helped you establish a care plan for your loved one and identify how a home health aide would be beneficial for your situation.

Next, we encourage you to take a look at the home environment of your loved one. The objective of aging in place is to keep your loved one in their home for as long as possible. A great way to do that is to identify potential hazards in the home and improve them before tragedy strikes.



Here are a few examples of hazards that might exist in your loved one’s home and a suggested way to make their environment safer.

Hazard: Too Many Stairs

A home with a lot of stairs can be a real challenge for someone with limited mobility. Even a short staircase with only 1 or two steps can be dangerous if your loved one steps down incorrectly or forgets there are stairs entirely.

Solution: Install ramps, handrails or stair lifts to make it easier to get up and down stairs without a risk of falling.

Hazard: Bending or reaching for hard to reach items

While many of us are accustomed to reaching for items tucked away in the corners of our closets, this can present a risk to the seniors in our lives. Too often heavy items can fall off a high shelf, or you throw out your back bending over to pick up something heavy from a lower shelf.

Solution: Add additional shelving at convenient heights to avoid the need to bend down or reach for heavy items.

Hazard: Slips in the Bathroom

There is no area in the home with a greater risk of injury than the bathroom. When water and steam are involved, it creates a perfect storm that can lead to devastating falls and injuries.

Solution: Install grab bars, anti slip strips and/or a walk-in tub in the bathroom to make getting around easier.

Of course, there is no better way to give yourself peace of mind than by hiring a home health aide. A caregiver can assist your loved one with any number of daily tasks including bathing, cooking, administering medication, shopping and cleaning. Not only will your loved one get help, they’ll benefit from the companionship of a caregiver and you can have peace of mind knowing that someone is there for support to reduce your loved one’s risk of injury.

To talk with an expert about adding a home health aide to your loved one’s care plan give us a call at 610-365-4099. We are here to help.

We hope you enjoyed this installment of the Aging in Place series! Next month we will cover “Using Technology to Live Independently.” Check back for updates!