Assistive devices help enhance senior independence and safety.
Think of the many tools you utilize every single day – your phone, hairbrush, toothbrush – simple items, but ones you can’t envision living without. For millions of older adults, there are basic adaptive devices available that enhance senior independence and may mean the difference between living at home and facing a move to assisted living. Yet nearly half of older adults living at home are not utilizing these beneficial tools – even though prices are minimal.
A recently available Health and Aging Trends Study assessed the ability of seniors to perform tasks such as rising unassisted from a seated position and walking, and found that a large number of the participants could significantly benefit from assistive devices.
Not only that, but the risk of senior falls due to the lack of simple assistive devices is increased, resulting in hospitalizations, serious injury, and disability that may easily have been prevented. In fact, once these devices were made available to older adults, based on research, disability rates for older adults fell by 50 percent, together with a reduction in pain levels and an increase in the capacity to perform activities of daily living independently.
Dr. Kenneth Lam, author of the study, explained, “It’s a technical problem which, unlike so much of aging, is actually solvable. In the hospital, I can order an M.R.I. and charge the system thousands of dollars. But down the road, that won’t help patients not fall. What happens when they get home?”
As greater Toronto’s senior home care leader, The Care Company, is pleased to offer in-home evaluations to recommend changes to the home environment that enhance safety and help older adults remain independent and in control. We are able to also help enhance senior's safety, comfort, and independence through services such as:
Offering accompanied transportation for medical appointments, errands, and fun outings
Preparing healthy meals and ensuring adequate hydration for seniors
Providing help and support as necessary with personal care needs for safe bathing/showering, getting dressed, etc.
Maintaining an organized and tidy home
To schedule your assessment today, reach out to us at 416-422-2273.