Do you want to stay in your home longer? Wondering how?
What is Aging In Place/Home Modification/Universal Design?
Thinking about your future, comfort, and ease of living at home with any unforeseen condition?
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines aging-in-place is "the ability to live in one's own home community safely, independently, and comfortably, regardless of age, income, or ability level." Universal design anticipates the needs of a home's occupants, accommodating declining health and mitigating potential hazards.
Are you looking to stay in your home or support a family member living in your home? Wanting to stay out of nursing homes and hospitals? Aging in place is achievable. By making a barrier-free home, it is also ready for anyone, at any age. In a recent AARP study, 92% of people ages 50 and over would like to live in their current home for as long as possible to delay the very high cost of retirement home living.
The average cost of nursing homes in Massachusetts is $353 per day. This is higher than the national average which is $228 per day or a range of $7,050 to $13,200 monthly, with the average cost coming in around $126,290 per year. The national median cost for all 50 states is approximately $6,360 monthly.
Investing in the home via home modification or adding an in-law apartment, increases value, and is less expensive than going to a nursing home.
Occupational therapy plays a key role in identifying strategies that enable individuals to modify their homes, identifying how the environment affects the ability to perform desired occupations, thereby maximizing independence, reducing falls, and increasing length of stay in the home. Occupational Therapists are the only professionals recognized by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) to make recommendations for home modification for people with declining abilities.
Changes don't necessarily need to be expensive or labor-intensive. Some changes are easy and have little expense. For example, secure upper-body supports such as handrails or grab bars, or no thresholds between doorways, widening doorways for ease of access. Check out this free home safety checklist.
Big or little projects
A modified home allows families and loved ones to age at home safely.
wheelchair elevator
