How Safe Is the Kitchen at Your Senior’s Home?
Most people regard kitchens as the heart of the home, but they can also be dangerous rooms for your aging adult. Here are some steps you can take to make the kitchen safer for your senior.
Homecare in Islip NY: Senior Kitchen Safety
Appliances Have Special Needs
The kitchen is full of appliances that have some specific needs. For example, coffee makers left on can overheat. Stove tops or ovens that are left on can be a fire hazard. All of these situations can be bad news for your senior. Do what you can to select small appliances that turn themselves off after a set amount of time. You can also find alarms that remind your elderly family member to turn off the stove or oven when she’s done using them.
Kitchen Timers Can Help a Lot
If you’ve ever forgotten that you had something cooking, you know how frustrating it can be to come back to burned food. But if your senior forgets that she’s cooking, she might run into even bigger problems. Having more than one kitchen timer available for your senior allows her to keep track of each separate item that she’s cooking or that she has on.
Loose Clothing and Items Can Create a Hazard
Loose clothing, papers, and kitchen towels or potholders can all be a tremendous problem, especially around open flames. Encourage your elderly family member to pay close attention to what she’s wearing and doing as she’s cooking. Rolling up her sleeves or even using a rubber band to secure the sleeves can make a big difference.
Check the Fire Extinguisher
Your senior’s kitchen should have a working fire extinguisher that she knows how to use. Many newer models use only a button to operate, making them much easier for an elderly adult to manage if she had to. Consider installing a couple of fire extinguishers in your senior’s kitchen and make sure that she knows how to use them properly.
Consider Hiring Some Help
Another way that you can help your senior to stay safe in the kitchen is to limit what she has to do in there on her own. Hiring senior care providers enable your senior to turn over the more dangerous aspects of being in the kitchen to someone else. They can help her to eat healthy, home-cooked meals without her having to be any more involved than she wants to be.
Keep an eye on the kitchen situation at your senior’s home regularly. Big changes can happen seemingly overnight, so it’s vital to stay on top of things as much as you can.
If you or an aging loved-one are considering Homecare in Islip, NY, please contact the caring staff at Family First Home Companions. Serving all of Long Island. Call today: (631) 319-3961
Jennifer has specialized training in Alzheimer’s disease through the Long Island Alzheimer’s Association and the Long Island Alzheimer’s Foundation.She also volunteered her time with the Alzheimer's Disease Assistance Center of Long Island for 3 years by providing cognitive stimulation to an Alzheimer’s patient group.
Jennifer educates the community about elder care and speaks to caregiver support groups, senior centers, and at professional organizations.Topics include home safety, effective strategies for family caregiving, elder care planning, and awareness about elder abuse.
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