It’s important to take precautions to ensure a safe and healthy life. With age comes a natural decline in health. In this guest post, Holly Kramer discusses 5 safety tips for senior patient health.
By Holly Kramer
If you or your loved one is a senior, it’s important to take precautions to ensure a safe and healthy life. With age comes a natural decline in health, but by taking safety precautions, you can prevent some of the injuries and illnesses that cause complications in old age. If you’re in 55+ senior living, it’s time to take responsibility for your health and safety. Here are some helpful safety tips that keeps seniors safer and living a longer life.
#1 – Wear an emergency button
As you get older, the risk of experiencing a fall becomes much more threatening, and so having an emergency button can prevent you from being stranded alone in the event you do have an accident. Emergency buttons are small buttons, often attached to a bracelet or an easily accessible item of clothing, that you can press to contact an emergency responder as well as your family in the event you need help. Some emergency buttons even use biomedical sensors to detect when there is something wrong with the wearer’s breathing or heartbeat and to contact help if necessary. An emergency button is a great investment for older adults, particularly those living on their own.
#2 – Leave lights on throughout the house
It’s very important that seniors are able to see as they are navigating their home, because low lighting can increase the chances of an injury. Vision also tends to decline in old age, making it harder to see. To prevent problems, install night lights throughout your hallways, particularly in tight corners or areas far away from windows. When you’re awake at night or on cloudy days, keep all your lights on to increase visibility.
#3 – Cover slippery floors with grip mats
A slippery floor like tile or hardwood will make you much more likely to fall, particularly if you are wearing socks or spill something on the floor. To reduce your chances of falling, be sure all slippery surfaces in your home are covered with grip mats. These are mats that are safe to walk on and use grips to stay in place. You can also place these mats under rugs and carpets for a more aesthetically pleasing look.
#4 – Keep your space clean
You are much more likely to experience an accident if your space is full of clutter and grime, but luckily, this can be prevented with regular cleaning. Be sure to wipe down your floors to prevent slips, particularly right after you’ve spilled something. You should also be cautious of keeping your floors and surfaces clear of clutter, and keeping sharp objects stored safely away in a drawer when they aren’t in use. If you struggle to keep your space organized, investing in a dresser or bookshelves can provide extra storage space so you’ll have an easy place to put things when they aren’t in use.
#5 – Always keep your medications organized
As you get older, you’ll likely have to take more medications to manage physical and mental health conditions. It is very important that you take the medications as specified to prevent any complications. Having a good pill organizer will make it much easier to keep track of what you have and haven’t taken to prevent either missing a dose or taking two in a day. You should also set up a reminder system to ensure that you are taking your pills at the right time.
It’s very important that seniors take steps to ensure their safety as they get older. If you have a senior in your life or are a senior yourself, assessing your home and daily routine for safety will help you live more comfortably. It also may help to talk to your doctor about any specific risks you have related to your personal health, and ask any other senior living help questions you have.
Holly loves to write on issues related to seniors, aging and retirement. Holly is a frequent contributor on many blogs and websites that help provide comprehensive resources on senior living options.
