Whether your senior loved one is getting ready to move and downsize or just wants to make their current home better suited to the next phase of their life there are many household things that they can and should get rid of. Clutter is dangerous for seniors who may trip and fall over piles of things or furniture. A home care assistance provider can be a fantastic resource to help you and your senior loved one decide what should go in order to make the home safer. Home care assistance providers have years of experience working with seniors and they have a good understanding of what items tend to be the most dangerous in the home as seniors get older. The items that experts recommend seniors get rid of include:
Floor Lamps
Floor lamps can be difficult for seniors to turn on and off and they tend to stick out. But it’s floor lamp cords that can be very dangerous for seniors. It’s easy for a senior to trip over a floor lamp cord and fall. A better solution to increase the amount of light in a room is to have overhead lighting put in. Make sure that the switches for any overhead lights are easy to turn on and off. Push plate switches are much easier for seniors than knobs or dimmer switches.
Coffee Table
Another big tripping hazard for seniors is a coffee table. Coffee tables are typically low, wide, and placed in the path where people walk. Instead of having a traditional coffee table seniors should have side tables next to chairs so that they can get up out of the chair without anything in the way. Side tables that fold up and down so that the table portion can be placed over the senior’s lap but then folded away when not needed are ideal for seniors.
Area Rugs
Area rugs can warm up cold floors but they also are notorious for tripping seniors as they try to walk. Get rid of the area rugs. If the floor is too hard or gets too cold during the winter you can have wall to wall carpet installed. Wall to wall carpet will provide all the benefits of area rugs but won’t trip seniors as they walk around the room.
Hallway Runners
Hallway rugs, like area rugs, can be a problem for seniors as they try to move from room to room. In a hallway your senior might prefer to have no rug or wall to wall carpet. If your senior loved one decides to have no rug you can add a texturizer to the floor to make it less slippery for seniors who are walking around in their bare socks.
Occasional Tables
Occasional tables clutter up rooms and increase the chances that a senior will fall trying to go around them. Get rid of them. If there are photos or other items sitting on the tables move those items to sturdy built-in bookshelves or wall shelves so that your senior loved one can enjoy those items without the risk of falling.
