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Sarah Drummond Kirby
Colorado State University Cooperative Extension
- The
basic need for housing is protection from the elements
and intruders.
- Front
and back doors should have strong dead bolt locks.
- Post
emergency numbers and your address by each telephone.
- Set
the thermostat of the water heater at 120 degrees
F or lower to prevent accidental scalding.
- As
a reminder to keep the smoke alarm working, change
the batteries on your birthday.
- Keep
a lamp or flashlight and telephone within reach
of your bed.
- Make
sure handrails are sturdy and securely fastened.
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Our
homes fulfill many needs for us. Often, the most basic need
is for housing to protect us from the elements and intruders.
Once we are warm and secure, other needs arise. Comfort and
a place for self-expression is vital for our well-being. Home
gives a feeling of independence. Our home should also be a
place that is safe from accidents and injuries.
One
must feel safe and secure in order to be able to relax, so
be security conscious. Front and back doors should have strong
dead bolt locks. If your situation allows, install a burglar
alarm system. A "peephole" for all your outside doors is a
good idea so you can see who is at the door before you open
it. The peephole should be installed at the proper height
for you. The peephole should also allow you to see a range
of 180 degrees from side to side.
Not
only should your home offer physical comfort, but it should
provide emotional comfort as well. Surround yourself with
things you like. These could be items from the past. Retrieve
mementos from attics and old trunks that stir pleasant memories.
There are many suitable places in today's world for objects
and pictures from the past.
Home
accidents are a major source of injuries and can cause death.
The elderly are especially vulnerable to serious injuries
from home accidents. Older bones are often less dense and
more brittle, causing them to break more easily. A simple
fall can become a serious, disabling injury that limits independence.
As we
age, our senses of sight, touch, hearing, and smell tend to
decline. Our physical abilities are reduced, making it more
difficult for us to perform certain tasks such as stretching,
lifting, and bending. In addition to these declines, we also
experience a slowing of judgment and reaction time. As a result,
we cannot respond as quickly as when we were younger. These
normal changes in perception, physical abilities, and judgment
make us more prone to accidents. Taking simple precautions
and making adjustments in our home can help insure a safe,
accident-free home.
On the
following pages, you will find a series of checklists. Use
the lists as you go through your home. Make a check mark next
to those items or behaviors that you have. If there are some
items that you do not check, then your home is not as safe
as it could be. By improving those items not marked, you can
make your home a safer and more comfortable place to live.
General Safety
____
Emergency numbers and your address are posted by each telephone.
____
Telephone can be reached from the floor.
____
Inside and outside door handles and locks are easily operated.
____
Lever-action door handles are used instead of round knobs.
____
Door thresholds are removed or are low and beveled.
____
Windows are easily opened from the inside, but have a secure
locking system that can prevent someone from entering from
the outside.
____
The thermostat of the water heater is set at 120 degrees F
or lower to prevent accidental scalding.
____
Medications are stored in a safe place according to instructions
on the label of the package or container.
____
Carpeting and rugs are not worn or torn.
____
Small, loose rugs have non-skid backing and are not placed
in traffic areas of the home.
____
Appliances, lamps and cords are clean and in good condition.
____
There are no exposed bulbs in lamps or fixtures that can cause
glare.
____
All electrical equipment bears the Underwriters Laboratories
(UL) label.
____
Enough outlets are located where they are needed in every
room.
____
Electrical overload protection is provided by circuit breakers,
fuses or ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI).
____
If the house contains do-it-yourself wiring, the wiring has
been checked for safety. (A municipal electrical inspector
or an electrical contractor can do this for you.)
____
Electrical service has enough capacity to serve the house.
(It is up to code. You can call your municipal electrical
inspector to have the wiring in your house checked.)
____
Extension cords do not carry more than their proper load as
indicated on the cord or appliance.
____
Electrical cords are placed out of the flow of traffic and
out from underneath rugs and furniture.
____
Smoke alarms are present in the home and are in working order.
One idea to help you remember to change the batteries is to
replace them on your birthday.
Kitchen
____
The range and sink areas are well lighted.
____
If you have a gas range, it is equipped with pilot lights
and an automatic cut-off in the event of flame failure. (Your
local utility service representative can check this for you.)
____
The range is not located under a window with curtains which
might fall onto a burner.
____
If you have an exhaust hood for the oven, it is provided with
easily removable filters for proper cleaning.
____
The kitchen exhaust system is internally vented, discharges
directly outside, or discharges through ducts to the outside
and not into the attic or other unused space.
____
Countertop space and height is ample to keep carrying and
lifting to a minimum.
____
Kitchen wall cabinets are not too high to be easily reached.
____
Lighting of counter tops is enough for meal preparation.
____
The light switch is located near the door.
____
Shiny or glaring work surfaces are not used.
____
Oven controls are clearly marked and easily grasped.
____
Oven controls are located on the front or side of the oven.
____
A single-lever mixing faucet is used.
____
Flooring is safe and non-slip.
____
When cooking, you turn pan handles away from other burners
and the edge of the range.
____
When cooking, you avoid wearing garments with long, loose
sleeves.
____
Hot pads and pan holders are kept near the range.
____
The exhaust fan is turned on when using the range.
____
If you have a microwave oven, operate it only when there is
food in it. Use potholders to avoid burns.
____
Small appliances are unplugged when not in use.
____
Knives are kept in a knife rack or drawer.
____
Counter tops and work areas are cleared of all unnecessary
objects.
____
Drawers and cupboards are kept closed.
____
A stepladder or step-stool is used rather than a chair to
reach objects in overhead cabinets.
____
Grease or liquid spills are wiped up at once.
Stairways and Halls
____
Steps are in good condition and are free of objects.
____
Steps have non-skid strips or the carpeting on them is securely
fastened and free of fraying or holes.
____
Smoke detectors are in place in hallways and near sleeping
area.
____
Hallways and bathrooms are equipped with night-lights.
____
Sturdy handrails are on both sides of stairway and are securely
fastened.
____
Light switches are located at the top and bottom of stairways
and at both ends of long hallways.
____
Inside doors do not swing out over stair steps.
____
There is enough overhead space in the stairway to avoid bumping
your head.
____
Room entrances do not have raised door thresholds.
____
It is easy to see the leading edge or nosing of each stair
tread while walking down stairs.
____
Stairways and hallways are well lighted.
Living Room
____
Electrical cords are placed along walls (not under rugs) and
away from traffic areas.
____
Chairs and couches are sturdy and secure.
____
Chairs and couches are not too low or too deep to get in and
out of easily.
____
Chairs and couches have full arms to aid in sitting or rising.
____
The light switch is located near the door.
____
There is enough space to walk through the room, leaving clear
passage ways for traffic.
____
Furniture that might be used for support when walking or rising
is steady and does not tilt.
Bathroom
____
The bathtub or shower has non-skid mat or strips on the standing
area.
____
Bathtub or shower doors are glazed with safety glass or plastic.
____
Grab bars are installed on the walls by the bathtub and toilet.
____
The towel bars and the soap dish in the shower stall are made
of durable materials and are firmly installed.
____
A single-lever mixing faucet is used, or you have faucet handles
that are easy to grasp.
____
Bathroom flooring is matte-finished, textured tile, or low
pile commercial carpet (not throw rugs or bathmats).
____
Bathroom has even lighting without glare.
____
The light switch is located near the door.
____
The bathroom door opens outward.
____
The bathroom has a safe supplemental heat source and ventilation
system.
____
The outlets are ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI) that
protect against electric shock.
Bedroom
____
A lamp or flashlight is kept within reach of your bed.
____
A night light is used to brighten the way to the bathroom
at night.
____
Plenty of room is left for you to walk around the bed.
____
You have an adequate-sized nightstand or small table for the
telephone, glasses or other important items.
____
There is a sturdy chair with arms where you can sit to dress.
____
Wall-to-wall low pile carpeting or a smooth surface floor
covering is installed.
____
You use a bedroom on the first floor of the home.
____
A telephone jack is installed in the room.
Outdoor Area
____
Steps and walkways are in good condition.
____
Handrails are sturdy and securely fastened.
____
Doorways, steps, porches and walkways have good lighting.
____
Porches, balconies, terraces, window wells and other heights
or depressions are protected by railings, closed with banisters,
closed with fences, closed with accordion gates, or are otherwise
protected.
____
Hedges, trees, or shrubs do not hide the view of the street
from the driveway.
____
Garage doors are easy for you to operate, even when snow is
piled against them.
____
The garage is adequately ventilated.
- American
Association of Retired Persons. (1985). The Do-Able Renewable
Home. AARP: Washington, DC.
- American
Red Cross. (1984). Independent Living Services. Home Safety.
- Boschetti,
M. A. (1990). Reflections on Home: Implications for Housing
Design for Elderly Persons. Housing and Society 17 (3),
pp. 57-65.
- Brent,
E. E. and Brent, R. S. (1987). ERHAP: An artificial intelligence
expert system for assessing the housing of elderly residents.
Housing and Society 14 (3), pp. 215-230.
- Golant,
S. M. (1986). Subjective housing assessments by the elderly:
A critical information source for planning and program evaluation.
The Gerontologist 26 (2), pp. 122-127.
- Herman,
G. As We Grow Older...Housing Needs in Later Years. North
Carolina Cooperative Extension Service.
- Howell,
S. C. (1985). Home: A source of meaning in elder's lives.
Generations 9 (3) pp. 58-60.
- Raschko,
B. B. (1982). Housing Interiors for the Elderly and Disabled.
Van Nostrand Reinhold: New York, NY.
- Stoppard,
M. (1983). The Best Years of Your Life. Dorling Kindersly
Limited: London.
- U.
S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. (1985). Home Safety
Checklist for Older Consumers. U. S. Department of Health
and Human Services (Office of Human Development Services
Administration on Aging).
- Weisman,
J. Housing as We Grow Older: Design Considerations for a
Supportive Environment. Cooperative Extension Services of
the Northeast States.
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Disclaimer
and Reproduction Information: Information in NASD does not
represent NIOSH policy. Information included in NASD appears
by permission of the author and/or copyright holder. More
NASD Review: 04/2002
Service
in Action 9.913, Cooperative Extension, Colorado State University.
Published June 1992. Reviewed October 1992. Copyright 1992.
For more information, contact your county Cooperative Extension
office.
Sarah Drummond Kirby, Oklahoma State University Cooperative
Extension housing specialist. Reprinted with permission
from Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension.
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