Showing posts with label Seniors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Seniors. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Fire Safety Tips for Seniors Living at Home Alone

When it comes to senior living at home, one of the biggest issues is the fire safety. The danger of fire when it comes to elder people are always present. The statistics on senior home safety say that the death toll caused by fire accidents for people over 65 is double compared to other types of accidents. For the elder people over 75 the death toll caused by fire accidents is tripled then the national average in the United States. And because of that senior safety is an important issue that is analyzed by many. This is an issue both for elder people living independently, with family members or in a care facility. The best way to deal with this problem is to follow few simple tips on how to downsize the risk of fire safety. These steps include:

- Extra caution in the kitchen. The kitchen is a place where most of the fire accidents happen. The senior home safety would be much better if the elder works with more caution in the kitchen because they often tend to forget to shut down the stove or something on the stove. The food in the stove must be attended at any time and it is recommended that senior who cooks to have a wooden spoon with him as a reminder. Also, it is recommended at senior's home install cooking range monitor so there is no danger from catching fire. The senior safety would not be such a big issue if the fire accidents in the kitchen are decreased and don't happen if possible.

- The heating appliances. Senior people should always unplug all the heaters and electrical appliances when they are not using them. The curtains or the clothes that are hang to dry should be far enough from any heat source at any time. When talking about senior home safety it must be mentioned that senior people tend to forget portable heaters alone and leave or go to sleep. This is a big cause for many fire accidents in the households that led to destruction of property and death as well.

- Smoking habits. Smoking in bed is a bad idea for everyone not for seniors only. After using the ashtray, it is important to empty the ashtray in a metal container or if you forget to empty it than the ashtray should be placed on the sink or the counter during the night.

- Night time rules. So you could sleep better at night you must remember to check if the heaters and appliances are turned off, to keep your eyeglasses and robe close to your bed as well in a case of emergency.

- Have a plan. To have a plan means to be prepared for every eventuality. In order to increase the aging parents safety it is vital to install in their home a smoke alarm. Having a smoke alarm can prevent many fire accidents. Also, senior should have a plan of their escape route in a fire emergency. The plan should include at least two possible exits in case of fire emergency.


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How In Home Heath Monitoring Systems Could Benefit Seniors

It has been noticed that the health of people who have made it up to their golden years begins deteriorating more quickly. Due to the fact that the work and family life of today can be very demanding, often people do not have enough to time to spend with their parents and their elderly loved ones. Surely people are still concerned about their well-being and safety, especially for the older adults who continue living independently. Leaving older adults unattended can pose a risk for their health in adverse health situations where they require immediate health care and it can be really problematic for people who are unable to regularly check in with their elderly loved ones. Then again, there is still a ray of hope for the elderly people to live alone and yet be taken care of, in the form of the health monitoring technology.

Often elderly actually have a preference of living on their own and independently, rather than going to health institutions or nursing homes. Due to their old age, there are also of tasks that the older adults cannot carry out on their own, but they prefer to not rely on others to achieve particular tasks.

Now, for the elderly, their independent lifestyle does not have to be compromised nor do they have to feel concerned about depending on others since they are fortunate enough to have in home health monitoring systems. With modern technology such as this, older adults get to enjoy their safety while people can ensure their elderly loved ones are living safely, on their own.

The health monitoring technology for the elderly actually falls under two different categories.

Medication Monitoring

Many elderly people can forget or take wrong medications; therefore these in home health monitoring devices alert the user to take the correct medication on time. These systems also include intelligent pill boxes for the accurate division of medications.

Home Medical Monitoring

A majority of the health monitoring systems of today include the capability of two way communication, so elderly users can always remain in contact with a dispatcher in case of any emergency or health situation. These systems actually make it possible for older adults to receive health care as soon as possible when the need arises.

Health monitoring systems are merely a small step on the road to a technology which is successfully helping seniors live their life on their own, right at their homes.


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