Whether you're caring for an aging senior in your home or theirs, providing additional care and protective measurements to ensure their safety is an essential and necessary step. However, adapting a household to meet the needs of a senior loved one can be difficult, especially when their needs are sensitive or ever-changing. While senior care providers offer in-home assessments to help you identify common risks and potential dangers, there are specific areas you can address on your own. To help you provide safe accommodations in your senior relative's home, consider the helpful guide below.

How to Safeguard a Senior's Home

1. Remove Tripping Hazards

Trip-and-fall accidents are among the leading causes of injuries in seniors. To safeguard your home and help reduce falls, begin by removing common tripping hazards such as area rugs, clutter, and exposed electrical wires. Provide an open space for seniors to travel freely, reducing the amount of furniture in the rooms they visit most frequently to ensure easy access and maneuverability. 

2. Assess The Kitchen

If your loved one enjoys cooking and is still able to navigate the space safely, it is wise for senior care providers to assess kitchen safety accurately. If reaching for items is required, be sure to provide a safe, slip-proof stepstool for their convenience. To be safer, pull frequently used and difficult to reach items from high shelves for easy access. Provide color-coded rubberized covers for water faucets to help seniors grip them easier and recognize both the hot and cold handles. Visiting caregivers should also pay regular attention to the refrigerator and pantry, clean spills and messes, and check expiration dates to discard outdated food and drinks.

3. Safeguard the Bathroom

One of the most hazardous rooms in a senior's home, bathrooms require special attention when ensuring the safety of your loved one. To prevent slipping, install grab bars in the shower and beside the toilet, place rubber mats in the bathtub, or provide a unique bathing chair or walk-in bathtub for ease of use. To reduce scalding risks, be sure the water heater is set no higher than 120 degrees.

For senior care, contact the compassionate staff at Visiting Angels in Toms River, NJ. With a national network of in-home care providers, Visiting Angels offers a wide variety of services, including meal preparation, medication monitoring, housekeeping, errand running, and more, to ensure the comfort and safety of seniors in their own homes. Contact them today at (732) 240-1050 or visit them online to learn more about their services.