Tips for Renovating a Home for Elderly

Home Sweet Home. It is always nice to be at our own home that other places. The place that has a lot of sweet memories with our love one. However, as the age increase, the home might not be the best environment for our parents to live. This problem can be encountered by remodeling our home to fill the needs of elderly.

Before renovation takes place, there are 3 things that must be consider in mind.

• What is the best material for your home that suitable for your parents?
• Have a clear understanding on your parents’ health condition.
• Have a clear idea on the design of the home that are safe for elderly.

Bathroom Renovation

Good hygiene and personal care are important for everyone including our elderly parents. So, it is important to make sure that the bathroom area is safe for the elderly to prevent any incident in the bathroom. Make sure to know well the health condition of parents to provide the best equipment to be install in the bathroom. Here are few basic things to be consider during renovation.

• Install grab bar near toilet and in shower.
• Buy a shower stool for your parents to sit during shower.
• Nonslip strips must be install on the bathroom floor.
• Adjustable showerhead can help your parents and minimize their movement in bathroom.

Kitchen Renovation

Instead of a fancy and luxurious kitchen area, remodel it into an accessible area for your love one to grab things and food comfortably.

• Adjustable and low cabinet help your parent on wheelchair to reach things in the kitchen.
• Change countertop to the rounded edge one to reduce injuries in the kitchen.
• Elderly might face difficulties to use faucet knob especially if they suffer from arthritic hands. Replace faucet knob with levers as it is not requiring grip to use it.
• Resign the kitchen wide enough for your parent to move around with wheelchair.

Living Room Renovation

A conducive living room is important and can make a huge difference towards our parents’ health. Even a minor tumble can lead to serious injury to them due to their physical condition.

• It is advised to install home sensors or fall sensors in the house so that immediate action can be taken when something bad happen to our beloved one.
• Install a sturdy handrail at the entranceways. If they are using wheelchair, a ramp would be necessary to make their movement easier.
• Clear the pathways and remove any worn carpet and install a rubber mat to reduce pain if the fall over in the living room.
• The chair in the living room must be good enough for them to get in and out easily. Strong armrest and high back seat give more support for them.

Bedroom Renovation

• It is better to prepare a downstairs bedroom so that it is easier for them to commute and avoid using stair which can be dangerous if the miss step.
• The bed must be not too high or low, so they can get in and out easily.
• If your parents are bedbound, it is better to prepare a good bet such as hospital bed that adjustable from time to time.

We must prepare a house that our elderly feels safe and happy to live there. Our own home will remain as the best place for us even though when we are getting older. A good renovation is the one that give comfortability to us and not the one that makes us suffer.