Stay at home, yes, but in complete safety

Those around them often adhere to the older person’s desire to stay at home. This solution is less expensive than a traditional retirement home, but some families still fear the fall of their eldest child. When the first addiction issues begin to emerge, some development work is often useful to secure your home and allow you to stay there longer.

Some general advice

Before setting up major work, do not hesitate to consult an occupational therapist. The latter will be able to give the key advice to secure housing according to the state of dependency of the elderly while anticipating the future. Sometimes these are a few simple but essential rules to avoid falls.

You can also get in touch with your banker to find out what modalities will have to be put in place for the financing of the housing upgrade work: see what happens. can offer you in terms of mortgage, check if its rates are interesting, or, more simply carry out loan simulations with it.

Remember that 450.000 people over 65 fall each year in France and that these falls often lead to (forced) departure from home to a specialized establishment.

In all rooms

Before getting down to redesigning the bathroom, bedroom or kitchen, a few general changes should take place in your home. Do not leave anything lying on the floor, stick the electric wires to the walls or to the complaints, fix the non-slip on the nose of each step of the staircase, remove or fix the rugs to avoid slipping on them, allow free access to the windows, install a telephone (with large enough keys) in each room, make sure that the lamps and switches are accessible. Illuminate the housing sufficiently to avoid dark corners.

In the kitchen

The kitchen is undoubtedly the room that needs the most changes because this is where domestic accidents usually occur. To cook with peace of mind, place all heavy objects in the lower cabinets, avoid balanced dishes, install electrical outlets on the worktop so you no longer have to bend down. It is also advisable to swap the gas cooker or the vitroceramic by induction: the hotplates drop more quickly in temperature and prevent risks. burning.

In the bathroom

The time of the toilet must remain a moment of relaxation and pleasure. Problem, when the bathroom has become dangerous, we no longer dare to venture there. The toilet becomes stressful so much we fear the fall… Too bad! It wouldn’t take much to change this situation. If possible, replace your bathtub with a shower (with a basin low enough to avoid stepping over the edge and risking a loss of balance). Install non-slip mats in and out of the shower.

In the bedroom

In the bedroom, clear access to the bed, put on a bedside table everything you might need at night to avoid getting up: lamp, remote control, telephone, water, medicine, tissues, etc. Ideally, the mattress should be placed at knee height, two feet, to avoid too much strain when going to bed or getting up. You will see, life will be more serene, more secure and those around you will be reassured.