How to Keep the Exterior of Your Loved One’s Home Safe for Her

Elderly Care in Falls Church VA

When you first start worrying about your elderly loved one’s safety at home, you probably spend a lot of time in the interior of her home, checking everything from top to bottom. But how much time do you spend outside checking exterior safety? Here are some things you should check for safety.

Check All the Exits

You probably know that the main entrance and exit to your loved one’s home is safe for her to use, but what about any others? If there are any other exits that your loved one doesn’t use often, make sure that they’re in good working order and safe to use. If your loved one uses assistive devices like a wheelchair or a walker, make sure that all of the exits could accommodate her. Some changes you might need to make include widening doorways or adding ramps.

Examine Steps and Stairs

Steps and stair ways, particularly ones that aren’t used very often, may not be as safe as you think that they are. Take a good close look at all of them, even if you’re just talking about two steps that lead down to a patio. Look for crumbling concrete or loose boards and then fix whatever problems you find. You may also need to add hand rails in order to help your loved one to feel safer.

Restrict Access to Water Features

Water features in your loved one’s yard are beautiful, but they can also pose a serious hazard. Make sure that you restrict access to any water features. Get covers for pools and hot tubs that you can secure in place when they’re no longer in use. Consider putting fences around ponds and fencing away access to creeks or other bodies of water that might run through the property.

Keep Clutter Confined

Yards can collect clutter pretty quickly. First there are the organic bits of flotsam and jetsam, like leaves, twigs, pine cones, mulch, and other garden items. Then there are the pieces that people can leave out, like hoses, yard tools, and toys the kids brought out. Do the best that you can to keep human and organic clutter confined and away from pathways where they might trip up your loved one.

Your loved one’s elderly care providers can help you to do a safety check of the exterior of your home if you’re concerned that you’ve missed something.

If you or an aging loved one are considering elderly care in Falls Church, VA, call the caring staff at Medical Professionals On Call today. 703-273-8818

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Michelle DeFilippis

I graduated with a BS degree and had been selling medical equipment to hospitals, clinics and technicians. More recently, a family member was diagnosed with dementia and we, as a family, realized we were not prepared t care for her. We were thrown into that whirlpool of hospital stays, 24/7 live-in care, skilled care, caring for mom ourselves and finally, now daily home care. This was such a stressful time that I started thinking there had to be other people, other families as overwhelmed and unprepared as we were.

Medical Professionals On Call has such a caring, professional staff who are available to step in with whatever level of care necessary for loved ones and to relieve you of that stress.

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