Care at HOME
Many seniors and disabled individuals want to remain in their own homes as long as possible. "I'd like to die in my own bed" is an often heard sentiment and it's easy to see why. At home you have the familiar around you. Your pictures on the wall, that special creak the stairs make when some walks on them, maybe even the smell of plumeria that wafts in through the window of the bedroom. The idea of having to uproot yourself from everything familiar and move into a facility - regardless of how nice it might be - is often seen as being put in jail.
The decision to provide care-at-home is, however, a decision that needs to be logically and with the health, comfort and safety of everyone involved firmly in mind. As with every step in a caregiving journey, planning carefully can make the trip much easier.
The first consideration in making this decision
needs to be safety. Analyze the home carefully for safety problems. This may mean remodeling the home or adding pieces of equipment to enable safe movement for both caregiver and care recipient. Consider these points
Bathroom accessibility (is the toilet high enough to be easily used without excessive bending, can a wheelchair be manuerved into the shower? (see bathroom checklist here)
The next room should be the kitchen. if your loved one is going to be using the kitchen at all, great care must go into preventing burns, cuts from sharp objects and broken glass or china. The temperature of water in the sink must be carefully regulated. (see kitchen checklist here)
Now the living area can be worked on. Are there any trip hazards? Floors with carpet provide an unstable footing for most seniors. Loose rugs shold be removed. In every area and especially this area, adequate lighting is critical. Adequate will seem brighter than needed to you. Look at the shelves, cabinets, tables, chairs - if someone fell against them would they suffer cuts from sharp edges or hardware? (see Living Area checklist here)
The bedroom is actually one of the easier rooms with which to deal. Consider the kind of bed being used. Do you need to upgrade to a hospital style bed that can be adjusted to the most comfortble position. Can your loved get in and out of bed easily or with proper help? Is the bed set up to minimize pressure sores? There are many types of matress and covers that reduce the development of pressure sores. Can someone visiting your loved one turns on lights when sit by the bed easily and still be seen? Think of this room in the terms of bed-ridden even if your loved is able to move around the house right now. The time might come when this room is the primary area being used. (see Bedroom checklist here)
Hallways and miscellaneous areas need to be kept clear of furniture, rugs, and brightly lighted at all times. Using motion senor light switches helps minimize electric bills while still ensuring light is easily available when someone enters an area.
Entrances and exits to the home must be easily negotiable. Ramps should meet ADA standards to prevent too steep a slope that could promote falls. All ramps and stairways should have sturdy handrails on both sides of the walk. the surface should be coated to prevent slipping but not using abrasive grit that should result in substantial tearing and injury if your loved were to fall.
You would be wise to have a professional come into your home and make an asessment for you and provide you with suggestions to help make the home as caregiving friendly as possible.
The Caregiver Foundation has contracted with Pac Con LTD to provide this service to families at reduced rates. And 10% of the fee comes back to help support the work of the Foundation.