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Many caregivers are supporting and caring for disabled and terminally ill family and friends in their own homes. Typically, most homes are not designed for caregiving.
Take some time to look closely at each room where your family member or friend may spend time, paying special attention to the bedroom, bathroom, and hallways. With advice from your family member or friend’s health care team, you may need to make some changes for the comfort and safety of all who live there, keeping these points in mind:
Safety
- Are there working smoke alarms and fire extinguishers throughout the home? Do you periodically check to ensure they are operating properly?
- Are emergency numbers - Fire, Hospital, 911 - and contact numbers by the phone or an equally convenient location?
- Are there nightlights for safety in moving around at night?
- Are there handrails to help move from room to another?
- Is there a raised toilet seat for easier sitting?
- Are there grab bars near the toilet and bathtub for safety in standing and lowering?
- Are there nonskid mats on the bathroom floor and in the bathtub to prevent slipping and falling?
If your family member or friend is disabled, you will want to ensure that he or she :
- has a clear path through each room, that there are no rugs or raised room dividers to trip over, and no slippery floors. You can carpet the bathroom with all weather carpeting to help prevent falls. This can be pulled up in sections, if it is wet.
- Uses a cane or walker, if needed.
- Is secure in his or her wheel chair. If your family member or friend is weak, a tray that attaches to the wheel chair can prevent falls and gives your family member or friend a place for drinks, magazines, etc. It is important to ensure that the wheels are securely locked when doing transfers, or if the older person’s chair is on an incline.
- Cannot fall out of bed. If the bed does not have guardrails, you can place the wheel chair or other guards next to the bed, and position your family member or friend in the middle of the bed so that she or he can turn over without fear of falling.
Mobility
- Can a wheelchair fit through the doorways in your home?
- Is a ramp needed on stairs?
- Is it easy to walk or move from room to room without running into furniture?
- Is there a nightlight for safety in moving around at night?
Equipment
Does your family member or friend need:
- A hospital or other special type of bed?
- Walker and/or cane?
- Wheelchair?
- Bedside commode?
- Lift?
- Oxygen?
Communication
Quick, easy, and readily available ways to communicate with others are a must for you and your family member or friend, especially in an emergency. You may borrow or purchase:
- A cordless speaker phone with speed dial memory so that you can simply hit one button in an emergency and get help without compromising the safety of your family member or friend.
- A cellular phone, if you and your family member or friend travel.
- A signal system which will summon help with the push of a button, if you occasionally leave your family member or friend alone.
- A specially equipped telephone with speed dialing, a large digital display for easy reading, and ring and voice enhancer, if your family member or friend has hearing problems.
- An intercom so you may listen to your family member or friend when you are in another room.
Meals
As people age, their taste buds diminish so their appetite and desire for food changes. Also, they can experience problems with chewing and swallowing. If this is a problem, please contact your doctor and ask for a nutritional consultation to help you and the person you are caring for.
Clothing
Regardless of our age or physical condition, we want to look and feel our best. Today’s clothing options make that a much easier goal to reach. When buying clothing, consider the following:
- Clothing that is washable and wrinkle-free saves on dry cleaning bills and ironing time.
- Slacks and skirts that have elasticized waistbands or tie waistbands are easier to get on and off and are more comfortable.
- Clothing with snaps, zippers and/or buttons down the front are easier to manipulate.
- Shoes that will not slip off easily, and have a non-skid tread.
- Interchangeable and color-coordinated clothing. For example, slacks and tops that be worn with several others.
Exercise
In consultation with your family member’s or friend's physician and physical therapist, you can plan a routine of exercises. Exercise, even for bed and wheelchair-bound older persons, helps to improve: circulation (blood flow), lung and heart function, posture, mental alertness. Exercise helps to prevent: Diabetes, pressure sores or wounds, Osteoporosis, Heart disease and Stroke.
If appropriate, encourage your family member or friend to do a little more physical activity each week. Vary the exercises and exercise with them to help encourage them. If they are confined to a bed or wheelchair, try to get them to exercise at least five minutes every hour, and regularly change their position to prevent pressure sores.
Getting and Staying Organized
Keeping track of the many responsibilities of caregiving can be daunting. If your family member or friend needs a lot of help, a well-planned routine can make the more demanding parts of your caregiving day go more smoothly, take less time and help to ensure that your family member or friend does not develop problems which could be prevented.
Making lists of important information helps to keep you organized and will be very useful in case of an emergency. These lists and other needed information can be put into a clearly marked notebook and kept where others can easily find them in your family member or friend’s room. This notebook should contain enough information so that someone filling in for you will know exactly what is needed and what to do.
For example, you might make a list of all the things you need for morning and bedtime routines such as bathing items, medications, and clothing. Buy several of these items, and have them close at hand. This saves time and keeps you from having to search or leave the room for them when you are helping your family member or friend. If you use items in several different places, such as the bathroom and bedroom, have duplicate items stored in these rooms.
You might also make lists of:
- Medical personnel with their area of expertise, addresses and telephone numbers
- Home healthcare agencies
- Other people who can help or fill in, if you need additional help
- Lawyers and financial advisors
- Where needed items are kept, such as thermometers and blood pressure monitors medications, when they are to be taken, and where they are stored
- Exercise schedules and directions
- Emergency contacts in addition to 911
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