Renovations to Make for Aging in Place

Did you know that 90% of the elderly population in America would rather spend their sunset years in their homes rather than nursing homes? That means that you need to make yours conducive to a loved one or yourself when you get to that age. Here are some of the renovations you can do to ensure that you or your loved one age in place.

Closet

According to the OnePoll survey, 57% of women feel that they have an easier time finding what they need from an organized closet. As you can imagine, an elderly person will not have the strength or zeal to go through heaps of clothes trying to find something to wear. You may therefore want to redesign their closet in such a way that it is easy to find what they are looking for. Consider compartmentalizing the closet so that you can arrange things like shirts, trousers, sweaters, and trousers separately. While at it, you can also make the opening mechanism of the closet easier if it looks like it has the potential to present a hard time.

Garage

Did you know that replacing a garage door earns more than a 90% return on investment? This is according to Remodeling Magazine. It is no wonder then that it is one of the most preferred home renovation projects for homeowners. Anyway, if you are keen on aging in place or making sure that your loved one does, you can renovate their garage to make it more age-appropriate. Garage renovation can include repainting the walls or insulating the rooms to ensure that they are not cold whenever they are there. You could also improve the lighting since elderly people tend to experience deteriorating eyesight.

Kitchen

How efficient is the kitchen? Will an elderly person have an easy time using it? These are some of the questions that you need to ask yourself as you think about renovating the kitchen. For instance, you can install lower shelves to make it easier for them to reach stuff that they need for cooking, or install a dishwasher to ensure that they don’t struggle with washing dishes. You can also get rid of a slippery kitchen floor and replace it with one that provides more traction. That way, you will not have to worry about them slipping and falling every time they are in the kitchen.

Bathroom

The bathroom is one of the rooms in many homes that records the most fatal accidents and that is because you are dealing with water and slippery floors. It gets trickier when it is a senior who has to use such a bathroom because the chances of them slipping and injuring themselves are quite high. As a way of making it easy for them to age in place, you can replace the floor with an anti-slip one, as well as install grab bars in the shower or tub. This will reduce the likelihood of accidents happening.

Bedroom

Consider finding hospital beds for home use. These are way better than traditional beds because these beds provide support better to the fragile conditions of the elderly. Hospital beds are very beneficial for the elderly because they are highly adjustable, very safe, and can be quite comfortable with the right mattress. The side rails can be life-saving for those that are a falling risk.

Adding a bed alarm that will let you know when your charge gets out of bed can help you make sure they are safe, prevent wondering, and get up to help them with bathroom trips. When I had my grandmother to care for this allowed me to know when she was up and getting into things in the middle of the night so I could make sure she didn’t get hurt in the kitchen or run out the front door.

Outdoors

Consider having something like a ramp at the front door of the house. This will facilitate wheelchair movements, seeing as most elderly people tend to have arthritis or other related diseases that make mobility a challenge. You can also spruce up the yard by getting outdoor furniture, planting flowers, grass, or trees, to make the space visually appealing for when the seniors come out to sun-bask. They will certainly appreciate and benefit from a space that is calming.

The thought of spending their senior years in a nursing home is unfathomable for most elderly people and that is quite understandable because nobody is comfortable in an unfamiliar place. The problem is that most homes are not designed to accommodate the elderly. You can change that by renovating your or your loved ones using the tips covered here and offering them the opportunity to age in a place they love.