Alzheimer Disease: Make the Home Safe

If you’re a caregiver for someone who has Alzheimer Disease there are some things that you’ll want to do to make the home safe for them to life in.  One of the goals of a caregiver is to keep your family member, or patient, home as long as you can. There are several things that you can do to make the home as safe as possible:

•    Improve the lighting in the home.  This includes hallways, stairways, and bathrooms.  Try to have the same level of lighting throughout since changes in light levels can be confusing for some patients.
•    Put rugs that are a different color than the floor or carpeting in front of stairs and doors so that the patient has an easier time identifying where they are.
•    Always make sure the patient takes their medication while you are watching.  You want to make sure that they are taking it and not missing a dose.
•    Close off any areas that can be a danger to the patient.  You can use child safety latches and locks to make many areas inaccessible, such as knife drawers in the kitchen.
•    Make sure that the food in the refrigerator is fresh and not spoiled.  People with Alzheimer Disease will often eat whatever they find regardless of the taste or condition of the food.
•    Limit the use of some equipment in the home, such as the oven/stove, toasters, and knives.
•    Look for appliances that come with an automatic shut-off device.  This can prevent fires and burns.
•    Have a list of phone numbers posted at every phone.  This includes phone numbers for the police, fire, doctor, poison control, and family members.
•    Check to make sure that smoke alarms are working correctly.
•    Keep fire extinguishers throughout the home.
•    Register with the Safe Return Program.  This program helps those people who have Alzheimer Disease make it home safely if they wander off and get lost.

Taking care of anyone who has Alzheimer Disease requires supervision that is sometimes constant.  This means that you need to make things as easy on yourself as you can so that you don’t spend too much time keeping your patient away from things that can harm them.  When you have a home that is full of safety features you know that your patient is going to be safe. 

This allows you to focus on other aspects of home care such as taking care of your patient’s emotions and making sure that they still do some of the activities that they enjoy doing.