Here Is How to Make Homes More Secure for Senior Citizens

If you’re healthy and able-bodied, then you may not experience life the same way as people with reduced mobility, like the elderly, do. What you see as a regular room could be full of potentially dangerous fall hazards for a senior citizen.

Unfortunately, seniors are also targeted by scammers who intend to trick them into giving them money. With some care and effort, the following steps can make a home much more secure and comfortable for the elderly.

#1 Secure the Outside

There are several ways to make the outside of the house safer for the elderly. There should be an unobstructed path to the door. If they’re visiting, then clear the steps and driveway of leaves and other potential fall hazards. If there are decorative items, then move them to the side.

If there are children at home, then make sure that they understand the importance of keeping the path clear. To help convince them, you can turn it into a game. Have them clean up their toys for a reward every time they’re done playing outside.

Consider adding a ramp for wheelchair accessibility. You can find a variety of options at different price points. Some solutions are permanent while others are temporary. If they live alone, then consider installing an intercom system with a camera monitoring the porch.

Word gets around fast. If the wrong people learn that a senior is living alone at home, then they may target the house for burglary night while everyone is asleep. Senior homes are also more vulnerable to porch pirates. Because of their age, seniors often receive contactless delivery. While such items may hold little value to others, they’re still irresistible to package thieves when they’re unmarked. Thankfully, there are a few ways to help protect seniors from such issues.

• Neighbours: If a friendly and reliable neighbour is living by, have the packages delivered to their address so that they can safely pass it to your elderly family member.
• Smart locker: A smart locker can only be opened via a password or by scanning a package. This way, only a delivery driver or the receiver can open this box.
• P.O. Box: If a senior’s packages are delivered to a P.O. Box, then they can collect them safely and at their convenience.
• FlexDelivery: Certain post offices offer services that allow packages to be delivered directly to them. After delivery, the receiver can visit the post office at any time to take their mail.

#2 Protect Them from Fraud

Scammers may pose as law enforcement officials, bankers, tax auditors, or investors. Scammers that take more time to swindle seniors take advantage of their loneliness and pretend to befriend them as wealthy people who need friends or potential lovers who recently lost a partner. Protecting seniors from fraud can take some effort but it’s worthwhile. Many seniors have lost their entire savings to such scams.

• Check up on them: Don’t let senior citizens in your family feel isolated. Call or visit them regularly for their mental health. Let them know about scammers who target seniors and the strategies that they use. Be wary of red flags. If they suddenly have a new online friend, then learn more about them. If a senior citizen’s patterns change or if they start visiting the bank more frequently out of the blue, then investigate immediately.
• Educate them about phone scams: Phone scammers feel particularly pleased when elderly people answer their calls. Here, they pretend to be a person of authority and create a false sense of urgency until their target sends them a large sum of money through an untraceable source. Educate your senior about phone scams to help protect them.
• Work with the bank: Many banks will send financial statements and account alerts to you for a senior citizen’s account with their consent. This way you can monitor their finances for suspicious activity. Alternatively, you can help a senior citizen set up a small checking account for regular use and keep their savings in a more secure account.

#3 Remove Clutter

Clutter is the biggest fall hazard for the elderly. Remove all newspapers, magazines, and any other potential fall hazards from the floor of every portion of the house to make it safer for the elderly to walk around. Make sure that other members of the household understand the importance of keeping floors clutter-free.

#4 Prepare for Emergencies

Elderly people are especially vulnerable in emergencies. For example, more elderly people die in house fires than people from different age groups. Make sure that all carbon dioxide and smoke detectors in the house are operational. Develop an escape plan to help them evacuate in case of an emergency.

The evacuation chair from www.evacuscape.com is an especially useful tool that can help the elderly escape during an emergency from a multistoried home such as a townhouse, two-levelled house, or an apartment. The chair is comfortable, durable, strong, cost-effective, easy to operate, simple to store, and can also function as a travel chair. Consider keeping one near the staircase or doorway in a whom where a senior citizen lives for help in emergencies.

#5 Check the Bedroom

Make it easier for the elderly to get off and on the bed in the bedroom by replacing the mattress with an elderly-friendly version. Add a nightlight to help them see in the evening.

#6 Check the Bathroom

As you did with the bedroom, add a nightlight to the bathroom to help them navigate when it’s darker. Consider adding rubber mats on the floor and in the bathtub. A grab bar and a hand-held shower will make it easier for them to bathe safely.

#7 Secure the Kitchen

Regularly check to see if the food in the fridge is safe for them to eat. Throw out any expired or mouldy items and encourage them to eat healthy food. Invest in a medicine organizer to make sure that they take the right medicine and correct dosage every when required. Take steps to keep the kitchen floor dry or they may trip and fall.

These seven steps can help you make a house safer for the elderly. Remember to involve them with every decision so that they feel safe and respected.

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