Ensuring Their Safety: Top Home Safety Tips for Older Adults

Best Digital Lock Singapore - If you live with or plan to build a home for older adults, it's important to know how to create a safe living environment that caters to their needs. 

Here, we will discuss home safety tips for older adults so you can create a safer home for the older adults living with you or yourself in the future.

Data shows that home accidents are a common concern for older adults. In Singapore alone, 67% of injuries experienced by older adults are the result of home injuries.

This report highlights the need for older adults to have a safe living environment and for everyone to know how to maintain security in order to prevent such accidents.

With a few modifications and increased awareness, it's possible to create a safe living environment that helps prevent accidents and injuries for older adults.

So, what are the home safety tips for seniors' safety enhancement? With attention to protecting older adults, here are some tips for making your home more secure and keeping older adults safe at home: 

1. Remove Any Objects or Obstacles That May Cause Them Tripping

Did you know what are the main causes of accidents among the elderly? It seems trivial, but the cause of accidents in older adults is falling at home.

Why are the elderly more prone to accidents like this? Older adults' limited strength and reflexes make it difficult to respond quickly and maintain balance when they are about to fall. 

As a result, injuries sustained by older persons are frequently the result of falling.

• What are some common causes of falls for older adults within their own homes? Some safety hazards in the home for the elderly that can cause them to trip are uneven carpets, rolled mats, and items scattered on the floor.
• Apart from that, cables that are often left scattered on the floor are also a dangerous threat.

So, how will you ensure that an elderly person is safe from this danger? You can create a safer environment by regularly picking or clearing things from the floor. Additionally, straighten the edges of the carpet and tie cables to the wall to prevent them from becoming scattered.

 

2. Use a Bed That is Not Too High

One of the home safety assessments for elderly people is to have appropriate furniture for them. It may seem like a trivial problem, but this turns out to be quite substantial, especially if the older adult has physical limitations and lacks balance.

Selecting appropriate furniture is crucial for the comfortable living of older adults. Among various furniture items, the bed stands out as a key component. 

Choosing a bed that is not too high and can be easily accessed by them is imperative. By selecting the right bed, we can significantly reduce the risk of older adults falling when they wake up or get out of bed. 

Furthermore, choosing the right bed can help them remain independent for extended periods without requiring outside support with everyday routines.

 

3. Install Anti-slip Mats in the Bathroom

Slipping in the bathroom is common among older adults due to its wet and slippery surface. Then, how do you prevent falls in the bathroom in the elderly?

Installing a non-slip mat in your bathroom is the easiest and cheapest way. The rubber material makes the non-slip mat provide extra protection so that older adults don't slip easily. 

In addition, the textured surface provides extra grip to the feet, which makes older adults less likely to slip in the bathroom.

 

4. Install a Grab Bar in the Bathroom

 

Apart from installing anti-slip mats, another option to maintain the safety of older adults in the bathroom is to install grab bars on the bathroom walls. 

This method is actually much better and more practical because you don't have to bother cleaning the bottom of the anti-slip mat like if you use one.

What is the function of this grab bar? 

Installing a grab bar near the bathtub or around the toilet can provide extra support when older adults go in and out of the bathroom. 

It also helps them when they have to do activities such as sitting and standing in the bathroom.

 

5. Install a Shower Seat

The following piece of advice is to put in a shower seat. You might want to consider installing a shower seat in your bathroom if the shower area lacks a seat. 

For some older adults, standing too long in the bathroom can tire them. A shower seat allows them to sit and rest while bathing, making it more comfortable and less tiring.

 

6. Install Handrails on The Stairs

 

The next solution on how to fall-proof a home for the elderly is to install a handrail on your staircase. Not only on one side, it is better to install it on both sides of your stairs.

A handrail is an imperative safety element that offers additional support when traveling up or down staircases. 

It plays a crucial role in preventing falls, especially for older adults who may have balance issues or muscle weakness. 

A handrail can be a significant aid for them to maintain stability and prevent any mishaps.

 

7. Improve Your Lighting at Home

 

Apart from the physical problems of not being strong and unable to maintain balance, age also decreases the ability of the eyes to see clearly. As a result, it is common for older adults to fail to see something alarming in front of them and fall.

So, to reduce this risk, the next tip of home safety for the elderly is to increase the lighting in the house. With good lighting, older adults can easily see potential dangers such as scattered items or possible fall risks in their homes.

It is not necessary to replace the entire home lighting system. You can change the lighting system only in high-risk areas. Some examples are stairs, bathrooms, or rooms containing many items.

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Related Content : How Can I Make My Bedroom Door More Secure? Here’s 10+ Tips

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8. Install Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms

 

Apart from anticipating the danger of falling, you also need to consider various dangers that may occur at home, one of which is fire. Unlike people who are still productive, older adults cannot respond to signs of an imminent fire, such as smelling smoke or gas.

Based on research, the ability to smell and distinguish an odor will drop dramatically after the age of 70 years.

Therefore, older adults will not know if there are signs of impending fire, such as the smell of smoke or gas.

It is crucial to install additional elderly safety devices, such as smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, to alert them of any hazardous smoke or gas in the house. Loud alarm sounds can help older adults realize there is a potential for fire to occur.

Home safety tips for elderly living alone: add safety devices that can help protect them from potential hazards. 

 

9. Install Fire Extinguishers in Fire-prone Areas

 

Apart from installing an alarm, you also need to increase the security of your older adult's house by having a fire extinguisher ready at home. Why is that?

A fire extinguisher provides immediate defense against small fires that may occur in your home or your loved one's home. 

You can utilize this device to promptly respond to fires, which is crucial when mobility and reaction times are limited, particularly for the elderly.

FYI, the best places to store fire extinguishers are areas that are at high risk of fires, such as your kitchen.

 

10. Provide Emergency Contact Information and Easily Accessible Telephone

 

Other home safety recommendations for older adults are to provide them with emergency contacts and a telephone that they can easily access in times of emergency.

In case of an emergency, it is important to have the necessary telephone numbers available for quick access. These numbers can include those of the police, fire department, or hospital. By providing older adults with this information, they can resolve any issues promptly, even if they are not at home.

Next, you also need to provide a telephone device that is easy for older adults to access at any time and is not difficult to use. If they have difficulty using a smartphone, you can consider using a simple cordless phone.

Ensure the cordless phone you bought is a big buttoned phone so it will be easier for older adults to enter the phone number. Also, place the phone somewhere they can easily reach it, such as next to their bed.

 

11. Provide Special Medicine Dispensers for Older Adults at Home

 

Another home safety for seniors checklist is providing a special medicine dispenser. As you know, older adults often have multiple medications to manage various health conditions.

It might be difficult for them to keep track of all the drugs they need to take, their quantities, and how often they need to take them daily. Through the use of a medication dispenser, you aid them in adhering to their medication timetable.

Older adults are susceptible to medication errors, including forgetting to take prescribed doses or accidentally taking excess medication. Utilizing medication dispensers offers a structured and visible approach to monitoring medication consumption, decreasing potential mistakes.

 

12. Install Additional Door Locks

 

If you have elderly parents living alone, being cautious about theft and break-ins is crucial. Unfortunately, criminals often target seniors' homes because they are more vulnerable and less able to defend themselves. 

It's important to take extra precautions to ensure their safety and security.

In order to enhance the home security of your older adults, consider adding an extra layer of protection by installing a secondary door locking mechanism. Various alternatives are available for this purpose, including flip locks and security door chains.

 

13. Install CCTV in Outside and Inside the House

 

A helpful tip to enhance security is to install surveillance cameras outside and inside the house. These cameras should be connected to mobile devices, allowing you to monitor your home from anywhere. 

This is particularly useful if you spend a lot of time outside the house or do not live with your family members.

In addition to enriching the security of your house against burglary, installing CCTV can also help you monitor the well-being of your older adults. For instance, if your parents live alone, you can monitor them both inside and outside the house. 

You can ensure they are in good health and not facing any issues that may concern you.

 

14. Install a Smart Door Lock

 

The next home safety assessment checklist for elderly safety is changing your door lock to a smart one. Installing a smart door lock in a home where older adults reside can offer more benefits than traditional lock types. 

Here are some of the reasons:

• Easier to Access by the Older Adults

With reduced vision abilities, older adults often have difficulty inserting keys into the keyhole. Problems like this won't bother them because access to the smart door lock can use a PIN code, card, or fingerprint scanner.

• Ensures the Safety of Older Adults 

Occasionally, parents or older adults, especially those living alone, may unintentionally leave the entrance door unlocked. One possible solution to this issue is installing a smart door-locking mechanism. Moreover, the convenience of quickly unlocking the smart door lock from the inside can be a lifesaver for older adults during emergencies.

• Provides Early Warning for Older Adults

Some smart door lock models have a fire alarm feature that scans the room temperature. With the help of this feature, you can anticipate fires early and evacuate older adults in the house.

If you want to replace your door lock with a smart one, you can get a smart one with good offers at Hoz. At Hoz, we offer fantastic deals on high-quality smart locks. 

Our team will help you build a secure home for your loved ones, particularly older adults. We're excited to guide you through selecting the perfect smart door lock for your needs.

So, those are some home safety tips for older adults that you can do if you want to make your home safer for your older adults. Following these home safety tips can significantly reduce the risk of accidents and injuries while maintaining comfort in your or your loved one's home.

 

Cheers,

 

Hoz,

Your Best Digital Lock Provider.