How to Prevent In-Home Injuries – Senior Care

Have you ever thought, how an elderly person would access a house? Probably not! But with the aid of the latest technology, we now have some awareness programs and information that has made our life easier. Any elderly people staying with you will need your help with basic healthcare and food chart, just to keep them safe and secured. It is very imperative to take care of them and improve the quality of their life. There are several ways to do that and one of them is by making the home safer for them and prevent home injuries.

Following are some of the most common incidents that may happen to the seniors of your home and you have to prevent all of it in a smart way:

1. Falls – Falls are inevitable and this may lead to both fatal and non-fatal injuries to seniors who have an average age of 65. In fact, statistics say that most of the elderly persons are injured due to a major fall. Now our duty is to analyze the situation and prevent it. The elderlies may fall as a result of misplaced objects, uneven floors, old unstable furniture and insufficient light in the room or even in the bathroom. Paying special attention is the best probable way to avoid falls which is not always possible. In that case, it is our duty to install handrails and bars in the most accident-prone areas. Make sure that there is someone with them who pays attention to them when they are going to the toilet. The floor has no objects that can cause tripping or slipping. Elderly care needs taking care of every little thing like providing them non-slip sole shoes or slippers.
2. Fire and Burns – Fire and burns are usually not so common but may occur as a result of unsafe wiring, old low regulating water heaters, and other risky things. Fire and burns have a higher risk for physical impairments to the elderlies. These accidents can be prevented by installing some basic things like an anti-burn device in the bathroom, kitchen, showers and even in the bathtubs. It would be ideal to purchase absolutely safe appliances that have some safety measures. Additionally, the kitchen and bathroom must have smoke detectors too.
3. Choking from food consumption – Senior care is vital for people who have issues with their vision or are allergenic to some specific food products. Choking food in the food pipe may also occur when laughing or talking while eating. This can be prevented by paying attention to the labels of the containers. Each and every jar must have prominent labels that can be read even with low vision. Anyone who is making food for the elderlies must take care that the food has a soft texture that can be easily consumed and digested.
4. Plan for emergencies – Just like we are always well prepared for any emergency situation like an earthquake, bad weather or any other natural disaster, we need to make preparations for any emergencies too. To make sure this sure, it is our duty to keep the most important phone numbers within their reach even under adverse conditions. Now, this is true that accidents can be totally prevented in this way, but at least we can make sure that our seniors are devoid of accidents but accompanied with precautions. In addition to this, we must also make sure that we keep them with absolute care and get regular checkups. Paying special attention to eye health and ear health is mandatory to prevent such undesired accidents.
5. Provide sufficient light – Having sufficient light is very crucial for older people and we have to make sure that they never have to walk through a dark room. The switches must be placed in such a way that the switch is easily accessible just after entering the room. Bed switches must be at an easily accessible area and placing a bedside lamp is compulsory to prevent falls while getting out of bed. There has to be some light that can illuminate the path from the bedroom to the bathroom and even stairway. Lastly, do not forget to keep a light near the main entrance to reduce accidents while entering or leaving the house.
6. Bed placement – It is very vital to choose the right bed position. This is because there are certain medications that can affect the quality of sleep and may result in feeling dizzy and drowsy. The room must be kept consistent so that they know the bed placement, height of the bed, lighting, and placement of furniture in the room. We need to make sure that there are no sharp objects in the room or even near the bed. They must have minimum lighting always especially near the floor so that they do not fall or trip over something.

Protecting our elderlies is our duty so following these senior care tips can be helpful. However, it is very important that you evaluate your home and decide what is best for you because individual requirements may vary from person to person.