Occazio Home Care

Smart home care starts with a mobility and home safety assessment. Identifying potential environmental and personal hazards for falls is as easy as looking around the home and observing. Here is a quick checklist to help determine if your loved one’s home is due for safety modifications.

Each “no” answer in the below survey indicates that a change should be considered.

• Does he take time to regain his balance when sitting up or standing up?
• If he feels dizzy every now and then, does he use a cane or walker?
• Do both his shoes and slippers have soles that provide traction?
• Are her bathrobes or dresses free of long cords or ties?
• Does she ask for help when she could use it to avoid a fall?
• If he must reach a high place, does he ask for help or if he is steady enough, always use a step stool rather than a chair to stand on?
• Can he turn on a light without first having to walk into a dark room?
• Does she have nightlights to guide her way to the bathroom at night?
• Are his chairs and tables stable enough to support his weight if he leans on them?
• Does she use non-skid wax or no wax on her floors?
• Are walkways kept free of clutter and cords?
• Are her glasses the right prescription or has she gotten her eyes checked recently?
• Does he allow time for his eyes to adapt to changes in lighting?
• Does he understand the side effects of all of his medications?
• Does she have grab bars, handrails and a non-skid mat in her bathroom and tub?
• Does she have handrails on all of her stairways?

Occazio Home Care can assist with determining if home modifications for fall prevention are needed. Call us in the greater Indianapolis area at 1.855.622.2946 (1.855.OCCAZIO) to learn more about our personalized home care services.

At Occazio Home Care, we believe in coordinating personalized care around recreational activities and exercise. Physical activity has many health benefits and can even improve balance and fend off falls. There are a number of exercises that can help improve stability, but before beginning an exercise program, seniors should first check with their doctor.

Knee Lifts: Try to lift your knee as high as your hip using a secure object to assist in maintaining balance. As you grow stronger, decrease the tendency to lean on a support, and try holding the leg up for 3 seconds or longer.

Point and Flex: While sitting, point your toes and then flex them. Repeat with both feet.

Toe Tapping: While sitting, tap your toes. Repeat with both feet.

Sit-to-Stand: When necessary, use a chair for support when standing and again when returning to a sitting position. Try to gradually decrease use of your arms as your legs get stronger.

Calf Muscle Strengthener: While holding onto a wall, chair or the kitchen sink, repeatedly raise yourself up and down on tiptoes. As your strength improves, go higher up on your toes and eventually try it on one foot at a time.

Shin Muscle Strengthener: Lean your back against a wall with your heels placed seven to eight inches away from the wall. Lift the toes of both of your feet off the ground as high as possible.

One-legged Stand: Hold onto a secure object during balance training, such as a sturdy chair. Lift one leg off the ground and try to maintain balance on your standing leg.

Occazio Home Care’s experienced in-home caregivers in New Castle are trained to lead safe exercises for seniors. Providing services throughout the greater Indianapolis region, contact Occazio Home Care today at 1.855.622.2946 (1.855.OCCAZIO) to learn more about our personalized care services.

The aftermath of a fall for a frail senior can be devastating—and falls oftentimes result in a chain reaction of other health complications. If you have an elderly loved one who lives alone and has mobility issues, you should know there are a number of products on the market that can help with preventing dangerous spills.

• Door Alarms: If you have a senior loved one who tends to wander, particularly at night, door alarms can help alert you or a caregiver that your loved one is moving about and may be at risk of falling.

• Monitoring Systems: Monitoring systems are becoming popular as a means of tracking an elderly individual’s movements at home. Sensors can be placed throughout the home to monitor movements and some even come with call functions for the senior to alert a caregiver in the event of a fall.

• Fall Management Socks and Slippers: These are available with rubber grips on the bottom to help prevent slips and are perfect for seniors who are considered high-risk for falls. There are also slip resistant socks that can be worn in the shower.

• Bedrails: Many falls occur during the night as seniors move in their sleep or get up during the night. Bedrails can keep seniors from falling out of bed and give them something to grip when standing to get out of bed.

Occazio Home Care caregivers can help as well, and we provide services throughout the greater Indianapolis area. Contact Occazio Home Care today at 1.855.OCCAZIO and learn more about our personalized eldercare services.

Occazio Home Care of New Castle has been helping area seniors and their families for years to understand simple home modifications that can significantly reduce fall risks for frail elderly or those with mobility issues. Here’s what can be done to reduce the risk of falls:

Lighting:

• Replace bulbs regularly to make sure there is adequate illumination in the home
• Use nightlights or motion sensor lights for better visibility at night
• Reduce the amount of electrical cords running across large areas

Floors:

• Install low pile carpet or skid-proof tile
• Remove rugs, or secure them with non-skid tape
• Use a contrast in color with paint, carpet and furniture to denote changes in surface types or levels
• Avoid using floor polish

Bathroom:

• Install grab bars on walls around the tub and beside the toilet, strong enough to hold your weight
• Add nonskid mats or strips to bathtubs
• Mount liquid soap dispenser on the bathtub wall
• Install a portable, hand-held shower head
• Add a padded bath or shower seat

To schedule an in-home assessment to evaluate the safety of your loved one’s living conditions, or to request more information on personalized eldercare in the comfort of home, contact Occazio Home Care at 1-855-OCCAZIO.