Welcome Caregivers and Occupational Therapists

Hello, I’m George Flowers. Welcome to the new ‘Home for Life’ blog.  You can come here to find news on how to overcome physical challenges and keep the people you care for living safely and comfortably in their homes.  Whether you’re an occupational therapist, professional caregiver or simply caring for someone you love, you’ll discover tips you need to help people live life to the fullest.  At home.  It’s my passion and I’m here to help you.

Where does that passion come from?  Have you ever seen those Rascal® mobility that scooters the zip along sidewalks and around the yard?  They were created by my family.  I worked for the Rascal Scooter Company for over 25 years and helped thousands of mobility impaired people regain their freedom.  I also focused on aging in place at other companies where we provided everything from “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” alarms to walk-in bathtubs. 

But even with all my experience, my own mother and step father wouldn’t listen to me when I tried to help them.

  My mother was 82 and had a long list of health problems from breast cancer to diabetes.  Tony, my stepfather, took care of her day and night until he was past the point of exhaustion.  But he wouldn’t admit they needed help.

Then Tony was stricken with Alzheimer’s.  This sad turn of events was my opening to take control.  I equipped their home with ramps for accessibility, a lift chair and grab bars for bathroom safety. And now that I see how much people love the walk-in bathtubs, I wish I’d installed one of those too! Then I enlisted the support of a nurse to help care for my parents.  After I had finished the modifications, Tony said ”you have made our lives so much better!   I wish we had listened to you sooner!”    That’s when I swore I was never going to let this happen again to anyone else. 

 

By the way, my mother conquered cancer.  I believe she was able to do this because of excellent medical care, her strong faith, and being able to fight her battle in familiar surroundings.
So I plan to cover all the new trends that are helping people live out their lives in their homes.  You’ll find out about cool new products that help people live their lives to the max.   And they do more.  They increase safety for caregivers like you.  But you don’t have to buy new products to make life easier safer.  I’ll share some quick tips that cost you nothing but a little time and could save a life.

So bookmark this blog, email it to a friend or colleague, or add our RSS feed. And of course, I’d love to hear your feedback on keeping your loved ones safe in their homes and what you’d like to read about on this blog in the future.

Until next time friends…

Do you have any stories of how you have helped someone with physical challenges stay comfortably in their home?

What products have you found to work best to help people live well at home?  For example, have you seen success with walk-in bathtubs?

What would you like to learn more about in this blog?  If it helps people with challenges live in their homes, we’ll be sure to report back on it.