Reduce fall risk
- Remove sills and level the thresholds or install threshold ramps
- Use slip-resistant flooring, anti-slip tapes, or anti-slip flooring treatment products.
Provide support
- Install vertical or L-shaped handrails beside the bed.
- A horizontal handrail should be installed 75 cm to 80 cm above the ground, which is about the height of the person’s wrist.
Convenient designs
- Enlarge the entrance to at least 85 cm wide inside so that wheelchairs can go through easily.
- Use folding doors or sliding doors so the person can open the door easily.
- Use lever door handles instead of round knobs so the person can open the door easily.
- Install additional vertical door handles so the person can open the door easily.
- Leave at least 50 cm between the wall and the bed so caregivers can go to both sides of the bed.
- Keep the bed at the optimum height at which the person can sit on it with hips, knees, and ankles at 90 degrees.
Reduce confusion
- Put signs on the doors.
- Put signs on the cabinets and drawers to indicate the kind of clothes inside.
- Keep the room dark to promote sleeping. Provide indirect lights only if the person feels uncomfortable. For example, you can turn the desk lamp towards the wall so that the room is dim even with the desk lamp on.
- Use low-gloss flooring.
Safety measures
- Install personal alarms so the person can call caregivers if needed.
- Install adjustable bed rails that can be folded down to the side of the bed.
- Install infrared sensors beside the bed as a bed alarm to inform caregivers when the person gets out of bed.
- Install a bed rope so the person can get up by himself or herself if needed.
- Use electric hospital home-care beds instead of manual home-care beds to avoid muscular damage.
- Use an alternating pressure pump and pad set to prevent bedsores if needed.
- Hinged doors should open toward the dining room so caregivers can get into the room easily if needed.
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Reduce fall risk
- Remove sills and level the thresholds or install threshold ramps.
- Use slip-resistant flooring, anti-slip tapes, or anti-slip flooring treatment products.
- Avoid using floor mats.
- Keep the corridor clean and clear without miscellaneous things and plastic boxes.
- Keep the floor tidy without electric cords.
- Put things that the person has to use frequently in places that are easy to reach without bending down or reaching up.
- Use cordless phones with extra handsets so the person can answer the phone easily.
Provide support
- Install horizontal handrails.
- Use heavy furniture that can provide support to the person when needed.
Convenient designs
- Increase the width of corridors to at least 85 cm so wheelchairs can go through and make turns.
- Keep the chairs and sofa at the optimum height at which the person can sit on them with hips, knees, and ankles at 90 degrees.
- Keep the dining table at the optimum height where the person can put his or her hands on it with shoulders and elbows at 90 degrees.
Reduce confusion
- Install night lights with sensors (photoelectric eyes).
- Paint the doors with colours different from those of the walls, preferably with strong contrast.
- Use furniture with colours different from the floor colour, preferably with strong contrast.
- Ensure there is enough lighting.
- Reduce stimulation by painting the walls with a creamy white, soft yellow, or soft green colour.
- Use low-gloss flooring.
- Use trouser chains to safeguard keys.
Safety measures
- Prevent accidental falls by using window guards, window stops, window wedges, or window restrictors.
- Install entrance locks that are more difficult to open to prevent the person from going out.
- Install motion sensors at the entrance to inform caregivers when the person is leaving the house.
- Use furniture with rounded corners or use foam edge bumpers on corners.
- Prevent the person from opening cabinets and cupboards by using locking straps, internal cabinet locks, and internal drawer locks.
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Reduce fall risk
- Level the thresholds inside the bathroom. Remove sills and level the thresholds or install threshold ramps.
- Use slip-resistant flooring, anti-slip tapes, or anti-slip flooring treatment products.
- Use bathtub transfer boards or shower chairs.
Provide support
- Install horizontal or L-shaped handrails beside the toilet.
- Install horizontal handrails in the bathroom.
- Install horizontal and vertical or L-shaped handrails beside the bathtub.
- Install horizontal handrails beside the shower tray.
Convenient designs
- Use folding doors or sliding doors so the person can open the door easily.
- Enlarge the entrance to at least 85 cm wide so that wheelchairs can go through easily.
- Reserve an empty space with a diameter of 140 cm or more for easy rotation of a wheelchair.
- Reserve knee space under the basin so that a wheelchair can move closer to it.
Reduce confusion
- Use tiles with colours different from those of the bathroom accessories, preferably with strong contrast.
- Ensure there is enough lighting.
- Install a light above the bathtub or shower tray so that the person will not be scared by his or her own shadow.
- Use a looking glass instead of a mirror to prevent the person from being scared by his or her own reflection.
- Use low-gloss flooring.
- Use faucets with long handles instead of cross-shaped knobs.
- Use frosted tempered glass if glass partitions are used.
Safety measures
- Use a water heater that has a programmable thermostat.
- Install an exhaust fan.
- Install locks that can be opened from outside if needed.
- Put signs on toxic detergents.
- Put signs on the controls of the faucets.
- Hinged doors should open toward the dining room so caregivers can get into the room easily if needed.
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Reduce fall risk
- Install threshold ramps or a raised timber deck to reduce the threshold.
Provide support
- Install a vertical or L-shaped handrail beside the door.
- Install horizontal handrails inside the balcony.
Convenient designs
- Reserve an empty space with a diameter of 140 cm or more for easy rotation of a wheelchair.
Reduce confusion
- Use frosted tempered glass if glass partitions are used.
- Put signs on the door handles.
Safety measures
- Raise the height of the balcony railing if needed.
- Avoid planting toxic plants.
- Avoid putting stepping stools in the balcony.
Reduce fall risk
- Remove sills and level the thresholds or install threshold ramps.
- Use slip-resistant flooring, anti-slip tapes, or anti-slip flooring treatment products.
- Put frequently used cooking utensils and accessories on the countertops.
Provide support
- Lock the drawers under the countertops and install handrails on the drawers.
Convenient designs
- Use an open kitchen for easy monitoring and assistance.
- Reserve knee space under the sink or the stove so that a wheelchair can move closer to it.
Reduce confusion
- Use lighted switches that can show when the power is on.
- Use power outlets with status indicators (red lights, red paint) and on/off switches.
- Use single-handle faucets or faucets with sensors.
- Use a water heater that has a programmable thermostat.
- Put signs on the controls of the faucets.
- Use low-gloss flooring.
Safety measures
- Use induction cooktops that have overheating protection and pan detection features.
- Use an electric water boiler and warmer.
- Install an exhaust fan or under-cabinet range hood.
- Put signs on toxic detergents.
- Put signs on raw foods.
- Prevent the person from opening cabinets and the refrigerator by using locking straps, internal cabinet locks, and internal drawer locks.
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