What is "Removing the barriers"?

REMOVING THE BARRIERS TO INDEPENDENT LIVING is a tutorial guide to Home Assessments that will determine what types of home modifications are needed.

In this informative guide you will find:

• 4 key questions to better home modification planning
  
• Wheelchair access/bathroom solutions, furniture platforms and trip-fall considerations.
  
• Ongoing safety tips
  Over 90 photos of actual situations used to illustrate common problems and resolutions.

Focus has been placed on practical rather than theoretical solutions to better help your family's needs during a time of crisis.

Why Is This Information Important To Caregivers?

Before I answer this question, I'd like to say I have became interested in developing a presentation for caregivers for many reasons.

I have an elderly mother-in-law living in my home and deal with the corresponding concerns on an everyday basis. In fact, Nancy's transition to our home was instrumental in starting Home Remedies. This is an issue impacting my family and myself personally. Read more about me, click here.

Further, I have seen hundreds of families struggle in their efforts to deal successfully with handicap/aging issues at a time of extreme stress. Often, they assume changes have to be extensive in order to be helpful. Simple changes to the home environment can create greater independence and mobility.

The demographics of the aging population in the United States indicate 800,000 new baby boomers are retiring every year. Living independently for longer is an issue continuing to grow in importance. It is key our seniors are presented with workable alternatives making their lives easier and support ongoing relationships with their families.

All of us are getting older every minute. As we age, we all start to see predictable changes in our abilities. Planning for these changes through independent living planning is a part of planning for a successful and enjoyable retirement.

Therefore, most of Home Remedies work is directed specifically towards the caregiver. In many cases, this is a spouse who may have health issues themselves. In my experience it is common to see a frail 75-year-old man caring for his elderly wife or vice versa.

The reality is when the patient comes home from the care facility, they go to bed, take their medication, have meals served to them and take temporary control of the television's remote control. Their caregiver becomes the cook, maid, butler and chauffer. In addition to worrying about their spouse, they must pick up prescriptions, transport back and forth to the Doctor's appointment, shop for food and try to get to bed on time. Social contacts become a remnant of the past as meals are missed. Sleep deprivation becomes a way of life. Predictably, stress is a constant companion and can prevent the family from recognizing/implementing workable solutions or locating someone to install a set of grab bars, build a ramp, etc.

My experience is when stress is relieved for the caregiver/spouse, the entire family benefits. Likewise, when stress is relieved for the professional caregiver helping the family, retention is increased; retention of caregivers translates into better care for the patient.

Who Else Can Benefit From This Information?

My hope is that this program will help the caregivers to plan wisely and creatively. This presentation may also be a key to help Social Service agencies develop additional resources in local communities or help employers deal effectively with the impact of senior issues in the workplace. This presentation is also a valuable training tool for Volunteer Organizations, Discharge Nurses to review with families, or anyone who may become a caregiver. It may also be helpful for adult children dealing with elder issues long distance.

What To Do Next?

Removing the barriers to independent living is a self guiding presentation that helps you go about determining what types of Home Modifications are needed. Over 90 photos of actual in home situations demonstrate common problems and how they can be resolved in a downloadable Adobe Acrobat PDF format.