When seniors decide to age in place one of the biggest safety risks they face is falling. Every year millions of seniors end up injured by falling at home. Often seniors end up with broken hips, broken arms, or shoulder and back injuries from falls at home. When seniors have serious injuries like broken bones they could end up needing surgery. Or, they may never fully recover. Their mobility may be permanently limited as a result of a fall at home. Regular visits from a home care provider will help seniors keep their homes safe and tidy.
But there are ways that seniors can lower the risk of falling at home. If your senior parent is living alone at home they should have home care. And seniors are less likely to fall while doing activities of daily living if they have home care to help with those activities.
Some other things that seniors can do to lower the risk of falls at home are:
Install More Lights
Better lighting can help seniors avoid falls by eliminating shadows and making it easier for seniors with low vision to see where they are putting their feet. But, floor lamps can be a fall risk because of the cords.
Install wall lamps or battery-operated rope lights to increase lighting without increasing the risk of a fall. Tacking rope lights on stairs and installing under-cabinet lighting in the kitchen and the bathroom can increase visibility. And motion-activated lights are a good idea for seniors to have in hallways.
Fix The Flooring
Putting down non-slip mats can help seniors avoid falling in the kitchen, bathroom, and doorways of the home. With non-slip mats in areas that are prone to get wet seniors are less likely to slip and fall because of a water spill or water tracked into the house on someone’s shoes.
Install Handrails In Hallways And Check Handrails On Stairs
Seniors who are worried about slipping and falling in the hallway when they’re going to the bathroom in the middle of the night or coming downstairs in the morning should have handrails installed in the hallways and along the stairs. If there are handrails on stairs already check them to make sure they are solid and stable.
Get Better Shoes And Slippers
Seniors should always wear shoes or slippers that have non-slip tread on the bottom when they’re in the house. Even if their home has carpet seniors should wear non-slip footwear all the time.
Move The Dog’s Crate
If your senior parent has a dog that bounds down the hallway or likes to get underfoot move the dog’s crate so that it’s in an out-of-the-way spot. That way the dog is less likely to trip your senior parent when they come in the house or come downstairs in the morning.
Arrange Furniture Carefully
It’s important to arrange the furniture so that seniors have a clear path to move around the house. But, you can also arrange the furniture to help your senior parent navigate the home more easily. Put benches in hallways so they can sit down if they need to. Put a chair at the bottom of the stairs and the top so that they can rest for a minute when necessary. Use furniture to help seniors avoid falling at home.
If you or an aging loved one are considering Home Care Services in Mt. Vernon OH, please get in touch with the caring staff at Central Star Home Health today. Call 419-756-9449
Central Star Home Health is a Trusted Home Care Agency in Ohio including Ashland, Bellville, Bucyrus, Crestline, Galion, Lexington, Mansfield, Marion, Mt. Vernon, Ontario, Shelby, and Willard.
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