Home Safety Precautions For People With Alzheimer's Disease

Discovering that a family member has Alzheimer's disease can be a sad and difficult discovery. This is a disease that is very difficult to deal with because it is so drastic and changes the person so much. There are a lot of home safety precautions that you probably have never considered before having a family member in the home diagnosed with this disease. However it is important that you begin to pay attention to these details so your loved one can live safely in your home for as long as possible. This article will outline some of the precautions that you should consider taking in your home. Many of these may seem excessive to you at first. It is up to you to decide what is appropriate for your loved one in your home.

• Always keep your list of emergency numbers near every telephone in the house.

• Make sure that you have enough smoke and carbon monoxide detectors throughout the house and that their batteries are functioning and have been replaced recently.

• Childproofing things like electrical sockets and drawers and cabinets is a good idea.

• Put away anything potentially dangerous or toxic in a locked and secured place. With this point you can never be too cautious. Once you realize that you should have locked something away, it's usually because it's already too late.

• Medications should be locked away from your family member to avoid that they take unneeded medication without realizing it.

• Hide a key somewhere on the outside of a house. There have been instances when a person with Alzheimer's in a confused state locks out their loved ones. If this happens you will have a key in order to re-enter the home.

• Make sure that you have adequate lighting throughout the home and outside the home.

• If you have a home security system be sure that the company is aware that you have a person in the home with Alzheimer's. Home alarm systems often have some kind of panic button installed and you don't want your loved one alerting the home security company when there is not an emergency. On the other hand, this function can be used by you and other family members if someone in the family needs to alert the home security company of a situation.

• Keep all floor areas free of clutter and things that could be tripped over. This could include cords, wires, throw rugs, and other clutter in the house.

• Consider installing an automatic shut off feature in your home stove. You can also remove the knobs on the stove and use them only when you are there to oversee.

It may not be necessary to make all of these changes right away. The important thing to do is stay aware and continue to observe the changes in your loved one. If it seems like it might be appropriate to make additional changes in the home at some point, then don't hesitate to do so. The safety of your loved one and the rest of your family comes first.