How can I make a house safe for a senior?

You can help yourself by retrofitting your house for yourself or to accommodate an older loved one. Seventy five percent of remodelers have seen an increase in requests for aging in place work. The National Association of Home Builders and American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) have a program called Certified Aging in Place Specialist Program. Here is what they recommend your home contain:

• A master bedroom and bath on the first floor.
• A low or no-threshold entrance to the home with an overhang.
• Lever-style door handles.
• No change in levels on the main floor.
• Bright lighting in all areas, especially places like stairways.
• A low-maintenance exterior.
• Non-slip flooring at the main entryway.
• An open floor plan, especially in the kitchen/dining area.
• Handrails at all steps.
• Lighting from multiple directions that reduces glare and shadows.
• Light sockets with more than one bulb so there is back up in case one bulb burns out.
• Stacking closets for a future elevator shaft.
• Use contrasting colors for depth perception.

In addition you may want to consider a home monitoring system from the "I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up" Life Alert type items to cameras in key areas that can be monitored through the internet by caregivers thousands of miles away. Again, these retrofits could be for you or an older loved one.

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