Bathroom Remodeling for Aging Eyes

I often blog about remodeling to make the bathroom safer for a senior who is not as mobile as they once were, but today I’m turning to another challenge that affects all seniors—aging eyes. 

What happens to aging eyes?

First, the pupil gets smaller. What does a smaller pupil mean to elderly people?

If you put a 20-year old and an 80-year-old in the same sun-splashed room in the middle of the day, the youngster’s eye will receive six times the amount of light.  It’s almost as if the senior is wearing sunglasses indoors.

It gets worse.  Now imagine the 20 year-old and 80-year-old person are up in the middle of the night navigating their way to the bathroom with little or no light. The young adult’s eyes are now receiving sixteen times as much light as the senior’s eyes.  No wonder seniors lose their confidence about driving at night, and getting around the home can be equally tricky.

Bathroom Remodeling for Every Budget for Seniors

If you have a senior you care for who’s still using a bathroom designed for the person who never ages, it’s time to remodel for safety so they can live a long, happy life at home.  Whether your budget is tight, moderate or generous, you can make some worthwhile improvements.

Bathroom Modifications on a Tight Budget

If your budget is constrained, you want to convert the existing toilet, bath and shower so they’re easier and safer to use, while adding safety accessories where necessary.

The Wheelchair-Friendly Bathroom

Most bathrooms were designed for people who are comfortably moving around on two feet.  But that’s changing.  In 1990 the American Disabilities Act (ADA) developed guidelines to accommodate physically challenged people in public facilities and businesses.  As more and more people decide to live out their lives at home, ADA bathroom rules are spilling over into residential design.

If you’re caring for someone who uses a wheelchair or you use a wheelchair yourself, keep these guidelines in mind when remodeling the bathroom.

Three Bathtub Replacements for Senior Safety

My goal is to modify bathrooms to make them safe and accessible for seniors.  So I love to see a spacious bathroom with a 60”x 60” turning radius for a senior who is, or may one day be, moving around in a wheel chair.  But most bathrooms are just not big enough.

I’ve noticed, however, that there’s usually a bath, about 60” x 30,” that seniors no longer use.  They’re legitimately scared to climb over the edge to get in and out of it, knowing that one misstep can lead to a life-changing fall. Seniors want to know what they can do with that space to make it usable.

Here are three practical ideas for bathtub replacements.
  
1. The Walk-In-Bathtub

Some walk-in bathtubs fit into the same 30” x 60” footprint squandered by the obsolete bathtub.  There are also narrower, shorter models, 28” x 48”, which use a panel to fill in the gap, keeping remodeling costs to a minimum.   Not only does the walk-in bath tub provide a warm, relaxing, and luxurious in-home-spa experience, it’s also safe, accessible, therapeutic, and health-promoting.

9 Less Common Bathroom Modifications for Seniors

There are many changes you can make to a bathroom to make it more accessible for seniors, but today I’m going off the beaten track to talk about cool modifications you just don’t hear about every day.

1. Slide through Sliding Doors

If a senior has mobility issues and is using a power chair or wheelchair, access through doors can be tricky.  The wider the door opening, the easier it is.  One way to achieve more space is to install a sliding, or pocket, door. 

2. Jack Up the Connections
Most people don’t have a telephone in their bathroom.  And if a senior has a cell phone, they often don’t carry it with them wherever they go.  But what if Aunt Ethel slips and falls?  Without help she could be in trouble.  Install a telephone jack and make sure she’s connected.

Walk In Tub One of the Top Products to Make Long Life at Home Easier

In my last blog post in this series I told you about my quest to help people live long, healthy lives at home.  So I’m always looking for products that help them live happily and safely in their homes. Last time I talked about the portable shower. 

Another product that’s on the top of my list, and should be included in any bathroom remodeling project for senior citizens who want to live a long life at home, is the Jacuzzi walk in bath tub.  Not only does the walk in bath tub provide a warm, relaxing, and luxurious in-home spa experience, but it’s also safe, accessible, therapeutic, and health-promoting. 

Bathroom and Kitchen Remodeling for Seniors with Alzheimer’s

According to the Alzheimer’s Association 5.4 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease and almost all of them are over 65.  And nearly half of people who reach the grand age of 85 are battling the disease.  Alzheimer’s is the leading reason for placing elderly people in institutions such as nursing homes.  Since I am a proponent of living a long life at home, these sad statistics started me thinking about how to prepare for living life at home with Alzheimer’s.

So I decided to solicit the opinions of my trusted colleague, Pam Rakoczy. Pam has over a quarter century’s experience in occupational therapy and now runs Liberty In Home Care, a homecare company that enables hundreds of physically and cognitively-impaired people in Chester, Delaware and Montgomery Counties of Pennsylvania to remain safely in their homes.

George:  Much of our time is spent remodeling bathrooms so that seniors can age in place.  Do you have any specific recommendations for the bathroom?

Pam:  We always make sure there are grab bars in the shower and that you can walk straight in to it.  We look at the difficulty of getting in and out of the shower or in bathing itself  because when you get to the later stages of Alzheimer’s, the senior may have difficulty getting in and out of the shower because they lose their balance.

Top Products to Make a Long Life at Home Easier: First in a Series

In my quest to help people live long, healthy lives at home I am always looking for cool new products that help them do just that. So I thought I would start a list of the top products.  Of course, I need your help too. So please respond to this blog with products you recommend.

One of my favorite products is the portable shower.  The soothing, refreshing feeling of a shower.   It’s a simple pleasure that’s out of reach for some people.  Maybe they can’t climb the stairs to the second floor shower because of surgery—a hip or knee replacement.   Maybe they have trouble accessing their current shower because it doesn’t accommodate a wheelchair.   The portable shower can help.

What’s the Cost of Not Remodeling a Senior’s Bathroom?

What’s been bothering me lately is that I’m meeting all these wonderful seniors, and I can see that they would be safer and happier after remodeling their bathroom for safety, but they resist spending the money.  It’s hard—they’ve learned to be frugal and they have to juggle spending on the basic necessities of food and prescriptions with an investment in remodeling. 

So that got me to thinking what were the costs of not remodeling the bathroom?  There may not be any immediate costs, but as we get older, we get frailer.  Then I can only see three options.

Take Steps to Prevent Caregiver Back Injury

I’ve seen construction workers in Philadelphia and other cities walk along fifty-storey-high metal beams like trapeze artists.  It looks like a job where you could get hurt.  And you can, but it turns out, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, that if you’re a hospital or nursing home worker, you’re more likely than a construction worker to experience muscle injuries on the job.  And they’re often related to the back.