There are always steps you need to take when a person has dementia. From being around a lot more, providing the necessary care support and making things safe around the house.
There are a whole array of things you can do to ensure your own safety or safety of a loved one, however, we’ve put in a few main ones to help you get started.
Check out our dementia friendly home ideas below here:
1. Keep rooms well lit
Ensuring that your house is well lit from natural light and lamps is important. Allow natural light from windows to flow in so you can keep track of the time of the day and remember what needs to be done.
Having other lights on in the house will help reduce any shadows or shapes that may cause a dementia patient to get confused. Sensor lights are a good idea if the patient gets up at night. Additionally, dimmer switches can also help, allowing the patient to have full control over the brightness and making a successful dementia friendly home.
2. Flooring is important
When it comes to flooring and making a dementia friendly home, it is important to recognise what mats and rugs you have around as they can become a tripping hazard. We would recommend plain matt flooring and contrasting colours for the stairs and walls so you can easily see and locate the floor which is safe to walk on without worry.
Remember to tape down any loose edges, and that edges are clearly marked so those with dementia have little issues when it comes to moving around the house.
These can be gradual changes so don’t feel obligated to change everything, we want to make sure everyone has the correct information and warnings, especially for everyday things that you might forget about, like your floors!
3. Setting reminders for food/dinner times
We all can have bad days where we forget to eat and skip a meal. For those suffering with dementia this can become a daily occurrence. We would recommend setting timers on your smartphone to remind you at certain times of the day when to eat.
It might be useful to get a whiteboard or cork board where you write out your meals for the day, letting you tick each one off or keep you on track so you don’t remember what might be in the fridge and can still have your meals with little to no help from anyone.
Remember, if you need to replace any major appliances in your kitchen you might want to get the same exact one again or very similar. This means it will be easier for those with dementia to know what is what and provide some familiarity and comfort.
4. Clearly mark the bathroom
When it comes to making a dementia friendly bathroom, we want those with dementia to have a pleasant and easy experience. Clearly labelling where the bathroom and/or toilet is will help them keep track of which rooms are important to them.
We would also recommend that the toilet seat is a contrasting colour so users can clearly see when the lid is up or down. Remember, people can have bad days so making it clear can help them in ways you may not recognise first-hand.
5. Don’t be afraid to label everything
To keep those with dementia having as much independence as possible, don’t be afraid to label items and objects they use the most. This will ensure they can manoeuvre around the house without aid all the time and get on with whatever they need to do for the day.
To help make a dementia friendly home, we would recommend using bright colours such as sticky notes to easily label and stick on items that they use the most.
If you want to read any more fantastic tips for making a home dementia-safe, checkout Alzheimers.org’s detailed guide here.
Do you need to get into contact with us?
If you’re struggling for care in the home then please contact us here at Care24Seven and we will do everything to help you and your loved ones today.