Home Safety Overview

Return to the prior page:  Is It Safe to Leave the Person with AD Alone?  

Prevention begins with a safety check of every room in your home.  Use the checklists presented on the following pages to alert you to potential hazards and to record any changes you need to make.   You can buy products or gadgets necessary for home safety at stores carrying hardware, electronics, medical supplies and children’s items.

It may not be necessary to make all of the suggested changes as some modifications may never be needed.   It is important, however, to re-evaluate home safety periodically as behavior and abilities change.

Your home is a personal and precious environment. As you go through the checklists, some of the changes you make may impact your surroundings positively, and some may affect you in ways that may be inconvenient or undesirable.  It is possible, however, to strike a balance.  Caregivers can make adaptations that modify and simplify without severely disrupting the home.  You may want to consider setting aside a special area for yourself, a space off-limits to anyone else and arranged exactly as you like.  Everyone needs private, quiet time, and as a caregiver, this becomes especially crucial.

A safe home can be a less stressful home for the person with Alzheimer’s, the caregiver and family members.  You don’t have to make these changes alone.  You may want to enlist the help of a friend, professional, or community service such as the Alzheimer’s Association.

See the next page in this series:  Home Safety Checklist – Inside the House

 

Acorn wishes to acknowledge the National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Aging and the Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center that were the sources for this valuable content.