Home Safety for Senior Citizens

While senior citizens today are enjoying life to the fullest, there are safety precautions that every home should have in place. As you age, your body will begin to change. You may not hear or see as well as you once did and you may begin to move a bit slower than you did in your younger years. Thousands of senior citizens are injured every year due to slips and falls at home that could have been avoided if the proper safety precautions were taken.

Home Safety for Senior Citizens

Home Safety for Senior Citizens

In order to keep yourself, or your aging loved ones, safe there are things that you must consider. In order to prevent falls, handrails should be installed on all stairs and grab rails or bars should be installed in showers and bathtubs. Small things like cords hanging on the floor and other debris could also cause falls and should be kept off the floor. Breaks or cracks in flooring should be repaired and smaller rugs should be fixed in place with double sided tape to prevent them from slipping when they are stepped on.

Lighting is one area that needs much more in many senior homes. Automated lights are an excellent choice for the elderly as they will come on whenever a room is entered and go off once that person exits the room. These lights can be very helpful outdoors when you arrive home at night. They can light the way to the door without worries of tripping over things in the yard that you may not be able to see clearly. Automatic lights can also be set to turn on at nightfall so that if you are not at home it will look as if you are. This is an important step for safety. Burglars tend to choose houses that look empty. When you have lights coming on automatically, your home will always look occupied even if you are gone for days or weeks.

A monitored home security system is essential for senior citizens. When your home security system is monitored, it provides an extra level of protection and a communication system is a great additional step. Should you fall or otherwise become incapacitated, a communication or medical alert system will get you the help that you need quickly. Monitored systems work well for those who may not be able to get to a phone during a fire or other emergency. If and when you are not reachable by the monitoring service, they will call for help and send that help to you.

There is absolutely no reason why senior citizens cannot enjoy a rich and full life. Taking these extra steps simply ensures that you stay healthier and more active as you age. Having a reliable home security system will protect you from a number of dangers and ensuring that you have a communication system set up in your home for accidents or emergencies will ensure that you get help when you need it. Taking just a few precautionary steps can make your home safe and enjoyable for your golden years.