Home Care Tips: Modifying the Home for Seniors With Arthritis

Home Care Referral Services in Rolesville, NC

Dealing with arthritis is something that many seniors face. This can be extremely painful and cause stiffening of the joints that diminishes range of motion, flexibility, and mobility. Seniors coping with arthritis can make it difficult for them to move around the home comfortably and safely, and reduce their ability to do basic tasks throughout their day, putting their independence and autonomy at risk. Finding ways to modify their home to promote easier and safer mobility and function for seniors with arthritis helps to enhance their lives, support mental and emotional health, and keep them as independent and active as possible throughout their home care journey.

Use these tips, and share them with your aging loved ones’ referred caregiver, to modify the home to make it more accessible and functional for seniors with arthritis:

• Create a stable floor. Arthritis can make it challenging to lift your feet high enough to get over obstacles or to stay stable on uneven flooring surfaces. Make the floor more stable and easier to walk on by removing loose floor coverings such as rugs and runners, and by using non-wax cleaners and polish to prevent slippery situations.
• Remove big steps. Stepping into the shower, up onto an elevated bed, or down into a sunken room may not seem like a big deal to you, but if your aging loved ones have arthritis, these steps can be extremely stressful. Make these tasks easier by adding steps into and out of the bath or shower and up onto an elevated bed, and a ramp down into a sunken room.
• Reduce reaching. Lifting something heavy from a shelf that is above your head and down at your feet is much more difficult than lifting that same weight for a position close to your waist. Keep this in mind when putting away items that your parents use throughout the day, such as laundry detergent, bleach, and softener, bottles of oil, or even folded blankets. Putting items away at waist level makes it easier for your parents to lift them even if they deal with arthritis pain and stiffness in their hands, arms, legs, backs, or necks.
• Ease opening. Gripping and turning a doorknob requires a considerable amount of dexterity which can be impossible for seniors who suffer from pain and stiffness in their hands. Make getting around their homes easier for them by replacing traditional doorknobs with latches or handles that they can grip more easily and that do not require turning.
• Assistive gadgets. There’s nothing like a good gadget to make your home more accessible and easier to deal with for parents with arthritis. Look for items such as can openers, scissors, and reachers that have handles and grips to reduce strain and make tasks like opening cans and jars or picking up small items easier and less painful.