Home is more than a structure.
For older adults, it is identity, memory, faith, and belonging.

Ageing in place means staying where life makes sense—
where neighbours know your name,
where routines are familiar,
where dignity is preserved.

I did not begin this journey as a researcher or architect.
I began it as a daughter—
someone who believed home should always be safe.

INCITING INCIDENT — THE PERSONAL WAKE-UP CALL

While I was working with the Australian government, my world stopped with one phone call.

My mother had fallen at home.

She was careful.
She was alert.
Yet she slipped in the toilet due to slippery flooring.

I rushed home and took her to the hospital—but what stayed with me was not the fall itself.
It was the helplessness.

I realised I had no idea how to make a home safer for ageing parents—
without turning it into something clinical or unfamiliar.

That moment planted a question that would not leave me:

How do we help our parents age safely in the homes they love?

THE MEETING OF ALLIES — A SHARED VISION TAKES SHAPE

A few years before Covid, I was introduced by Mr Cheah Tuck Wing, President of the 3rd Age Media Association, to Prof Teh Pei Lee from Monash University Malaysia.

Prof Teh shared her vision of launching Redesign at iHome (RAI)—
a project led by the Gerontechnology Lab at the School of Business, focusing on home hazard assessment and modification to enable older adults to live quality lives at home.

The moment she spoke, I knew this was the answer to the question I had been carrying.

This was not just research.

This was purpose.

THE DECISION — COMMITMENT & SACRIFICE

As my company grew, we made a deliberate decision:

A portion of our earnings would always go back into CSR projects—
especially those supporting ageing in place.

We committed to funding and fully supporting the Redesign at iHome (RAI) Project,
and to contributing iElder products as part of the home modification solutions—
not as commercial items, but as tools to enable safety, independence, and dignity.

The original dream was bold:
three families—Malay, Chinese, and Indian—
to reflect Malaysia’s diversity.

But reality tested us.

Funds were limited.

In the end, we could choose only one family.

THE CHALLENGE — ONE HOUSE, MANY RISKS

Working with Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat (JKM) Subang Jaya, the Monash team identified a B40 family.

That family was Pakcik Arbain.

He lived in a large kampung house in Shah Alam, next to his daughter’s home which had aged over time and required safety improvements.

Familiar. Meaningful. But unsafe.

The risks were real—slippery bathroom floors, narrow doorways, lack of support points, and no emergency alert system.

What followed was extraordinary.

Architects.
Contractors.
Occupational therapists.
Geriatricians.
Caregivers.
And iElder product specialists working closely with the Monash research team.

Everyone volunteered—not because they had to, but because they believed in the mission of RAI.

THE TRANSFORMATION — DESIGNING WITH DIGNITY

Pakcik Arbain shared something deeply important to him.

Five daily prayers.

So the bedroom was designed around faith.
A wooden grab bar, selected from iElder’s ageing-in-place solutions, was installed near his prayer area—strong, discreet, and respectful of the home environment.

The bathroom was transformed using a combination of research-guided design and iElder safety products:

• Door widened for wheelchair access

• Adequate turning space for safe movement

• Strategically placed grab bars

• A discreet SOS emergency button connected for quick assistance

• A custom-built seated bathing area, respecting Pakcik Arbain’s preference instead of a handheld shower

Every product was chosen not to medicalise the home, but to blend into daily life—
supporting independence without taking it away.

This was not a renovation.
It was human-centred, evidence-based design.

When we saw the completed home, we were moved.
The bedroom and bathroom were no longer places of fear—
they were places of comfort, confidence, and peace.

THE UNEXPECTED LOSS — THE DARKEST MOMENT

Then came the news.

Only one month after Pakcik Arbain began using his new bedroom and bathroom,
he passed away.

I was speechless for days.

I questioned everything:

• Was it too late?

• Did we fail him?

• Did it matter?

THE REALISATION — MEANING BEYOND TIME

And slowly, a quiet truth emerged.

For one month, Pakcik Arbain lived:

• Safely

• Comfortably

• With dignity

• In his own home

• Near his family

• Supported by thoughtful design and iElder safety solutions

• Practising his prayers without fear

That month mattered.

Because impact is not measured by duration—
but by meaning.

ENDING — THE BIG PICTURE RETURNS (Legacy & Contribution)

This journey taught me something lasting.

Home hazard assessment and modification is not about construction or products.

It is about:

• Love

• Respect

• Faith

• Research

• And contribution

Through the Redesign at iHome (RAI) Project, and with the thoughtful use of iElder products, Pakcik Arbain’s story became more than a single intervention.

It became learning.
It became evidence.
It became a reason to continue.

Because no senior should feel unsafe
in the place they call home.

And that promise—
is one I will carry forward.

Writer
Olivia Quah, Co-Founder of iElder

Source:

1. A Home Reimagined, A Life Renewed
2. MEDIA RELEASE - MONASH & AIM HEALTHCARE SIGN MOU TO DELIVER INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS FOR MALAYSIANS TO AGE IN PLACE

ZUD & Xiron Engineering Services Sdn Bhd, SE Bulan Design, DK Renov Solutions, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, REHDA Selangor, Malaysian Society of Geriatric Medicine, Keepers Group, Penang Retirement Resort, and Lestari Advisory Sdn Bhd.

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