In Your Home

How could you carpet a home for $37?

2010-09-18T08:51:00.000-07:00

Contractors have a reputation for questionable business practices and ethics, most of the result of a few disreputable small time operators. But for some time now, some of the big players in the remodeling industry have been using sales tactics that are as misleading as any fly-by-night roofer or siding salesman.

Home Depot is running ads saying that, on certain brands of carpet, you can get your entire home carpeted for $37. Now think about it that. The fine print says that it does not include the time it takes to move the furniture, pull up and dispose of old carpet, or install on stairs--so right there that $37 goes out the window. The installer is going to charge plenty for those items--but at least its relatively easy to see that these are not included.

But think about installing that carpet. In my state, the minimum wage is $8.40. When you figure employer costs on top of that, you would be lucky to get 4 hours of labor out of that $37. And to you want minimum wage labor installing your carpet?

Obviously the cost of installation is covered in the cost of the carpet--and possibly the charges for all those non-covered items. How else could it get paid for? Which means that you are paying more for the carpet than if the labor were priced separately.

At the end of the day, the total cost for carpet and installation may work out to be the same price as another carpet installer--but this type of advertising is misleading if not deceptive. It leads people to have unrealistic expectations as to what reputable, competent labor from a reliable company costs. And that does not do anyone in this industry a favor. Especially in the aging-in-place market where limited resources and fixed incomes require homeowners to do careful planning, creating unrealistic expectations is a bad idea.

The where's and whys of falls

2010-08-10T05:34:00.000-07:00

We’ve been providing our free online home assessment for nearly 7 years now and about 500 people have taken it. I’m starting to look at some of the data for patterns—while it is not a scientific survey, we can still see some interesting things by looking at what people are experiencing.

One thing that we do is ask if they have fallen recently and if so, how often. We also ask them where they have fallen. I plugged these “where” responses into a word cloud—if you are not familiar with these, a word cloud simply counts the words and shows words that occur more commonly in a larger font size. The results are interesting and confirm much of what we know about falls:

First, 43% of people completing the assessment reported falling, and that 43% reported an average of 5 falls in the past year—underscoring that once falls begin they can become relatively common due to chronic issues like poor balance, dizziness, vision problems or strength issues like “weak knees" or medical issues like a drop in blood pressure or "low blood sugar”

Tripping over any variety of objects is another common issue—rugs, stools, garden hoses, even the family dog are all mentioned.

Stairs or steps stand out as a key item related to falls—interestingly, when looking at the actual comments it is clear that this is much more commonly related to a single or short set of steps than a long stairway. We spend a lot of time worrying about staircases between floors but it is those hidden steps like sunken living rooms or entrance steps that appear to be the bigger culprit in falls--many who don't feel safe navigate long stairs probably simple avoid them--we've had a number of clients who have only lived on the ground floor of their house and avoided the upstairs or basement.

It's no surprise that the bathroom comes out as the most common location for a fall followed by the bedroom—where people report falling getting out of or around the bed. Ensuring that we have adequate support around the bed and taking our time here is and important but often overlooked area for home mods--my own mother fell getting our of bed and broke her pelvis, starting her long spiral of decline.

The kitchen is also a common place to fall—often because we are leaning or bending over and lose balance. Better cabinet design and retrofit pull-out shelving can help.

Living rooms/Dens are also common mentions. Some of this may simply be becuase these are rooms where we spend time--reading, watching TV, visiting. Steps, tripping hazards, loss of balance are all mentioned--the only pattern appears to be that these are rooms where we pend time, and so are going to get their share of falls.

Falls are hardly limited to the interior of the home. Sidewalks and outdoor garden areas come up regularly (look for the words individually). Tripping over objects or uneven surfaces appears to be quite common—reinforcing the need to ensure that pathways are smooth and continuous.

I’ll be sharing more insights from our assessment tool over the coming months.

More focus on well done but affordable solutions. please.

2010-05-14T21:37:00.000-07:00

This article at Silver Planet is from awhile back (a post I never got around to finishing) but seems as pertinent now as last year. It does a good job of conveying one of my common themes--that our approach to aging is about one's lifestyle, not just about adapting to decline. The subject, Cynthia Leibrock, is a noted author and had large feature article in the New York Times that I also intended to blog on but did not get around to, so this is a second chance. The NYT piece is the better article in my view for its message about remodeling for aging. Cynthia and I have only communicated via email a few times, so I really don't have a sense of her personality as portrayed in the Times' article. What i know is that she HAS contributed some great viewpoints about appropriate home environments. BUT, what irritates me about the Times article in particular it this: it is easy to create an aging-in-place showcase when you have a $600,000 budget. That's great, lovely, I'm sure it fits her lifestyle well and the future buyer of a home like that can afford to rip out whatever they don't like and install what they do like.

The bigger challenge, in my mind, is one that our company deals with every day. How to make a good aging-in-place environment when your budget is 5% if that amount, much less the 1% that is a typical number for many of our customers.

Aging wisely (aging beautifully, as Cynthia puts it) needs its cheerleaders, for sure. But it also needs its guys who are good with a hammer and able to knock out nice, functional, value-oriented solutions. I see the same thing when the local paper profiles an AIP remodel--it's always higher end, seldom (never?) about lower cost, practical solutions.

Cynthia makes a related point on her website when she discusses volunteering as a way to provide solutions for the less well off. But volunteerism will not solve the problem. I got a similar response from Senator Ron Wyden when I asked why Medicaid/Medicare will provide a wheelchair but do nothing to ensure the person can get past the 5 step entrance to their home. He gave a dodging, "it takes a community" type answer. Not that I necessarily want the government to take on yet another role, but as a country we need to treat these issues more rationally and creatively. Providing one solution without the other is an example of waste.

We need more attention on mainstream solutions, please--and I don't mean recycling those same old CDC checklists with a few new items. We are seeing the business community come to the plate with more and better solutions for things like barrier free shower systems. But we need to move to affordable, holistic solutions that cover both public and private resources.

Here are links to the articles mentioned above.

http://www.silverplanet.com/health/healthy-living/redesigning-homes-eye-future/54770

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/19/garden/19colorado.html

http://agingbeautifully.org/1024x768.html

And the time to explore it

2010-01-07T07:09:00.000-08:00

I see Laurie Orlov was also posting about phones the other day, (http://www.ageinplacetech.com/blog/cell-phones-older-individuals-more-features-fewer-features-or-smarter) and she has a great quote from a woman who loves her smartphone but notes "I've been retired for seven years so I have the time and patience to play with all the stuff on the phone." This brought up two thoughts related to my Nexus/iPhone post.

First, the quote seems to reinforce that the affection for "all the stuff" came after the purchase of the phone and was discovered because she had the time to play around. The phone is a source of entertainment. I've noticed for years that those of us in the middle, heavily involved in our work lives, are the ones who are the least adept at our gadgets because we have the least time and inclination to explore.

And this reminded me of a trend in the adoption of digital photography. Even before digital cameras became mainstream, consumer photo quality scanners and inkjet printers and related software applications made their way to the affordable end of the market. And, it was commonly the grandparents who adopted the technology first. They began to use them to make calendars, albums and cards using their travel pics and particularly pictures of the grandkids. It was the 50+ crowd that was often at the forefront this adoption cycle, with many of the rest of us only adopting once it had gone mainstream and one was built into every phone.

So, to temper my last post, perhaps time is a factor here--will we see a rapid uptake in more user friendly smartphones not because of specific applications, but because the abundance of apps is inherently an entertainment and relaxation opportunity for those with the time to play with it?

And, once they become mainstream in this way, will they start to serve more age specific purposes like monitoring, fall alert, etc?

Google Nexus and Apple iPhone—assistive tech?

2010-01-06T16:23:00.000-08:00

I was following the hoopla about the new Google Nexus phone and happened to notice the image on the Google site—this phone’s user appears to be “helping Grandpa get his tech on.” (It's down next to the weather icon.) It got me thinking, are these new generations of phones particular well suited to the aging among us? Could Google even be targeting the new phone for such users?

ElderGadget (http://www.eldergadget.com/) has posted several related articles on Elder Friendly iPhone and iTouch apps. I like what I see in that most of the applications are not things designed just for “old people” but rather are apps intended to be mainstream but with particular application or pertinence for seniors. Brain Games, for example, are stimulation exercises that can benefit anyone, but brain stimulation does have particular merit for seniors. While the original post fell into the trap of focusing primarily on health and emergency related apps, later posts have branched out to include apps for relaxation and mood lifting.

But, don’t I really have to be an iPhone user before I would experience these apps and find them useful? I’m not sure that many seniors would adopt the iPhone form factor in order to get the apps. The would adopt the iPhone for the same reasons people of any age will—because it is fun, interesting, engaging, well marketed and “cool.” But if there is anything about the iPhone, Nexus or their emerging ilk that does anything inherently to be more age appropriate and “help grandpa get his tech on” is that they have larger screens and single touch, icon driven operation rather than the small keypads and screens of more traditional cell phone offerings. It’s the basic design that provides the real benefit.

The Wii has generated widespread adoption in senior communities because the interface and opened up a whole world of virtual activities that seniors can easily adopt. I’m not sure that the touch screen interface of the newest phones has married to the software to the same degree.

Cooking Safety

2009-12-21T07:41:00.000-08:00

Laurie Orlov (http://www.ageinplacetech.com/ )was kind enough to provide a link for a home safety device in a comment to my last post. I thought I would add it here to ensure it gets noticed. This is an aftermarket device that can be added to improve safety for electric ranges. It is the latest generation of a type of product that has been on the market for awhile and certainly is something to consider.

However, a point I was trying to make is that features like this are more effective and generally more functional when they are designed into the product in the first place. The nice thing about the fire fighting faucet is that the technology is integrated so it looks better and works continuously in the background. Similarly, more faucets could be designed that inherently limit the scald risk. And devices like stove could have better safety features built in--is it this type of technical advancement I'm hoping to see (at affordable levels)

Until then, the aftermarket solutions will have to do.

http://www.cookstop.com/

Smart technology that protects everyone

2009-12-11T10:32:00.000-08:00

I came across this article in the NY Times today about a faucet that fights fires. Seems that the faucet is linked to a fire alarm. When the alarm trips, a special valve opens and a pump under the sink produces high pressure jets of fine mist. This mist immediately turns to steam around the fire and robs it of oxygen, putting the fire out.

I would love to see (read that as I have been WAITING to see)technology built into stoves that can sense when a pot gets too hot or when one has been left unattended for too long and lowers the temperature. That would be a better first line of defense. But having seen the effects of fires caused by overheated pots and pans or even unattended air poppers and other countertop appliances, this device will be a nice, non-intrusive approach to solving one of the worst after effects of "a senior moment."

http://tinyurl.com/y9zxxu8

Differences, and similarities, between aging and gardening;

2009-08-22T11:50:00.000-07:00

It is late-summer, almost the end of August. There is much in my garden that is vibrant—those rose bushes that have decided to put on a dramatic show this year, the bee balm in full flower and drawing hummers from every corner. The Kentucky Runners dangling their tender bean pods. But as I walk around my garden I see everything that has already bloomed. While there is so much good weather left to experience—here in Portland we can expect the pleasant weather to last well into October-- so much has passed, not to come again this year.

As with almost everything, I see an allegory to our clientele at In Your Home. So many people we work for have much good time left despite the fact that so much of bloom of their life has faded. The difference is that when I look at the spent blooms of my garden, I naturally think about next year. What do I want to move or propagate to extend the blooming season? What do I want to give something better conditions so it can really flower. Where are there holes to fill in the border or overcrowded beds to thin. There always another chance that another spring and summer provides.

But we humans aren’t a garden. We talk about the seasons of our life, but as I see it we are not a plant, but ourselves a garden that has one long “growing season.” Just like the garden in spring is different than the garden in late summer, if we live well, we can flower repeatedly with different blooms fitting each of our stages in life. Yet in the end, if we are honest, we know we have but one season that slips away toward that cold winter soil.

So, how do we provide the conditions that will make these lifelong season one that is as nurturing and fertile as possible? As always, I find, the garden has some inspirations:

Don’t be afraid to transplant. Uprooting and moving can be the right decision for many plants. We humans tend to be unique, enjoying changes in our environment at different times. We can fix up a house and sell it and move on to a new experience—aging in place need not mean being trapped in the same ol’ structure, it is aging independently and in community. As with a garden, certain times are better than others to transplant—leaving it too late or under the wrong conditions can mean your success is compromised.

Tend and till. A home, like a garden, only prospers if tended. A light hand at tending, perhaps, but tending none-the-less. If we don’t take care of our home, it will be eaten by mold, nibbled at by destructive creatures, and generally lose its vibrancy due to lack of care.

Acknowledge what does not work. Trying to get in and out of a tub shower has about as much likelihood of success as growing lavender in a bog. It may work for a few seasons if we work hard and catch good luck from the weather, but eventually the rot occurs. Better to plant (or build) what will work for the long term with minimum care.

If I think now about how I want my garden to be next year, I have a chance to make those changes and enjoy something better next year. Even if it does not work, the vibrancy of spring will mask my mistakes. But there is no spring vibrancy for us poor aging humans—so if I think now about how I want my own life to be, I can make the changes and start to appreciate them tomorrow. There is little point in waiting.

Survey targeting businesses serving the AIP market

2009-08-07T15:27:00.000-07:00

Mark Hager at ageinplace.com is fielding a survey targeting business people who are focused on the AIP movement. Sponsored by SRES (Senior Real Estate Specialists). A number of us in the community provided input.

It you are such a business, please take a moment to complete the survey.

http://www.ageinplacepros.com/about/aging-in-place-projects/2009-aging-in-place-business-survey/

Body Dryer

2009-08-07T14:40:00.000-07:00

This product made its way through my e-mail scanners--I rarely pay attention to those messages, but this appears to be another product coming over from the UK/Europe where product design for bathing accessibility seems to be ahead of what we have over here. It is a full body dryer, making it easier for someone to dry off after a shower without bending or assistance. The claim is that cost to operate is about the same as laundering towels--suppose that depends on how often you wash your towels tho.

Can't vouch for how well it works yet, but seems an ideal product for lots of folks.

http://www.tornadobodydryer.com/featuresandfaqs.html

Ageism at The Open

2009-07-20T15:15:00.000-07:00

Reading the press coverage of The (British) Open this morning after, the sports writers and pundits are showing the ugly head of ageism right and left. Their reports are rife with phase like “his tired old bones,” “his age finally showed,” and even “old geezer.” Never mind that other players of much younger ages have blown final round leads of greater margins with poorer play. Never mind that leading The Open, or any other major tournament, on all four days is a seldom achieved event. Never mind that a certain great player of the day never even made the cut. And never mind that there is a whole cadre of golfers Watson’s age who play professionally week in and week out. I’m sorry, but playing 22 holes of golf is not beyond a fit 59 year old’s ability, and especially not a great athlete like we saw this weekend.

Sure, there are not many times when a professional athlete past their thirties plays at the top of their sport. Certainly age catches up with us. But to say that the only reason that Tom Watson lost was because he is “old” just shows how far we have yet to go before we treat age fairly, practically and without bias. Nothing was a more insidious reflection of this than the two announcers saying that it was nice Cink had won because he is young, and that if Tom had won, it would not have changed his life. Meaning: he’s just a washed up old man with not much life left. Wasn't it nice he got out for a good walk.

Of course it would have changed his life. He would have been remembered for doing what no one else had done, to seal that image he thirsts for still—to be remember as a truly great golfer. Achievements change our lives every day until we die. To say they don’t knocks the legs out from anyone who tries to live the latter years of their life with dignity, grace and purpose.

Of course, the apologists trot out the adage “age is just a number” which is just as idiotic as saying that Watson lost because of his age. Age is much more than a number. It's a reality, baby. It is a reality that each of us chooses to handle in our own way. Some of us retire to an easy chair, adding to our girth and our medical problems. Some of us become demoralized and withdraw. And some of us choose to adapt and keep doing what we love to do, as best we can. Racings cars, gardening, climbing mountains, cooking, running companies, writing, travelling, etc. We retrofit our bodies and our homes and keep living as we want to.

Tom Watson has adapted. He has had joint replacement. He has stayed fit. He has adapted his game and the courses he plays—links style golf suits him well, whereas by his own admission he hates the Masters because the course does not suit his game and he feels like an honorary golfer rather than a contender.

Adaptation is the key to aging well and Tom Watson has given us a rare glimpse into how it can work. He played extremely well for someone of any age. I won’t say that what Watson did was a great thing and he should feel good about it even though he lost. Sure, it was a great thing, no doubt. But losing is going to, in his words, tear at his gut. To say that he should be proud anyway is patronizing and ageist. I like Jack Nicklaus’s explanation that it wasn't age or being tired,but that missing the putt on 18, missing the chance to seize the Claret Jug then and there, very likely took the wind out of his sales and he didn’t recover from that. It’s the same thing that happens to many people in all sorts of situations and all walks of life. But it is part of choosing to live a rich life. Age does not defeat us as much as not caring, not engaging, and also not being realistic does.

And to say that he lost because of his age is not only a great disservice to Tom, it is a disservice to Stewart Cink, who won not because Tom is “old”, but because Cink fought back, gave himself a chance, and had the drive to treat Tom as an equal and a bona fide contender and do what he needed to slam the door on Watson’s chances to take another title. While I’m sure some thoughts about Tom’s stature and age crossed his mind, Cink was one person on the course who was not looking through the lens of ageism—he just competed. Any class of people who are not treated as equal suffers, and that applies to those who have a few years on the rest of us as well as anyone.

Cink’s competitiveness underscores the point that Watson has done a better job than most of adapting and staying fit and keeping motivated by what he loves. The more we all deal with our age in a manner that reflects Watson’s drive and spirit, the better off we all will be. Our company helps people every day who are doing the same in much smaller and less public ways, and it is a joy to see.

Ageism endeavors to make us less than we are. The sooner we see the back side of it, the better. How widespread it was this weekend was a sad state of affairs.

Reinforcing visitability as part of Universal Design

2009-07-09T06:51:00.000-07:00

"My home does not hold anybody out." For some reason I had not come across this video from AARP before. I have to complement the team, it is a very nicely done video that really hits the key points. But I especially like the focus on visitability. If we are looking to create the optimal environment for aging in place, we have to remember our needs to socialize and maintain friendships. Socialization is critical for our emotional well being. Making it so our friends and family can visit is just as important in the long run as making it easier for me to do my ADLs so that I feel good about going out in the world. Hopefully we will continue to see more and more attention paid to visitablity by new home builders. In the mean time, companies like In Your Home regularly help people make their own homes better suited to this need.

The video is at http://tinyurl.com/nlpklj

Designs that are great for everyone.

2009-06-24T15:44:00.000-07:00

To follow up on the last posts a bit, let's talk about the Moen Digital IO series of electronic shower valves and controls. These new valves put all the plumbing behind the wall except for a small control panel that can be placed anywhere in the shower area.

When we remodel showers, we often bring the shower controls to the front of the enclosure, so they are easier to reach for a caregiver or someone with a balance issue, or moving them to the back wall where they are convenient for a seated bather. This electronic controller would eliminate the need to all that additional plumbing, helping to reduce the complexity of the install (and offset some of the cost of the device.)

But you can even get them with a remote control. Moen says that it would allow you to turn on the shower from across the room, however I suspect that few people have such an open floor plan for that to make a lot of sense. However, it totally eliminates any concern about where the controls are placed. Someone with balance problems can start the shower without having to reach in, and no one needs to risk getting hit with a cold spray of water--you stand safely outside the shower, use the remote to turn it on, and step comfortably in. Whereas my old solution of locating the controls in the location that best fit the user with a limitation meant that the shower was only optimized for a single person. Now, inherent in the design is that it is optimal for every user.

This principle is taken further with the fact that the controls have 4 preset temperatures--one for each member of the family. Especially useful, for example, if you have MS and need to have a cooling shower. But it is a feature that is of wide use--my wife prefers much hotter showers than I do. While we have a thermostatic valve, with this device I would not have to readjust it every time I get in, I just hit the button corresponding to my setting.

There is even a pause function--which uses the universal "II" symbol that we see on video and music players.

I haven't spoken to the folks at Moen to see what their motivation for this design was. But to me it speaks of a innovation that is targeted to provide comfort and ease for all shower uses, and it just so happens that it will have an enormous impact on the ease with which a lot of folks who are less mobile than they used to be or who have a disability manage their ADLs.

Prices on these electronic controls have continued to decline, and while the Digital IO line is still a premium over a standard valve, it is much closer to the range at which it becomes affordable. As prices drop further, I think we will see such systems as the smart standard for our shower remodels.

Design evolution

2009-06-12T16:32:00.000-07:00

Another set of thoughts on this theme is that as technologies and design evolve and mature, often this leads to a convergence that makes them more accessible to a wider variety of people. Certainly costs tend to decrease, making the designs more accessible. But abilities and general acceptability tend to expand as well, widening the appeal of newer iterations of a technology.

A case in point may be the evolution of what are now being called Personal Mobility Vehicles or PMVs. Today a PMV might be a scooter chair, a golf cart, or a Segway for the more adventurous. These devices are becoming ever more popular forms of transportation, either for those who lack the mobility to walk distances or for alternative forms of transport. In many retirement communities golf carts are a de facto alternative to a car. In fact, I recently read that about half the injuries on golf carts (they are rather unsafe vehicles) occur off the golf course.

Scooter chairs, on the other hand, are slower and therefore safer, but certainly have a stigma, are not always easy to manuever, and their size and limitations can sometimes make them a frustrating experience for both the rider and for ambulatory people who are sharing the sidewalk, common space, or kitchen.

Enter the modern PMV. One prototype is the Toyota i-swing. http://tinyurl.com/nv5zjz Read how it was described when displayed at the 2005 Toyota Motor Show: The single-person vehicle package boasts an individual design with a “wearable” feeling. Its low-resistance urethane body is covered in cloth to soften any impact while operating near people, and an LED illumination panel can be customized to display an image to suit your mood.When traveling in a bustling street full of people, the i-swing can operate in a two-wheeled mode that takes up little space, so that it is possible to travel while keeping pace and talking with someone on foot. When there is a need to move quickly, the i-swing can change to a three-wheeled mode, which is fun to travel in. In addition to the stick control, a pedal control can be used to provide a fresh cornering feeling, as you shift your body weight as if you were on skis.The i-swing proposes the concept of using A.I. communication to enable it to grow, learning the habits and preferences of users by storing relevant data about them.

Here, in one device, we have customization, adaptability for the user and compensatory systems (collision avoidance) so that I do not have to master a joystick to navigate safely. I have a design that is tolerant of the errors I make and sensitive to those around me.

This is another example of where application of smart design and UD principles result in a design that would be a better solution for wide range of people and applications than any of the current technologies. It's all just a prototype now, but clearly moving in a better direction, evolving the technology.

Design for the universe or the user?

2009-06-12T11:40:00.000-07:00

I've had several good responses to my recent post on Universal Design. In particular Bill Shackleford made some good points about the derivative effects of design for accommodation.

I don't disagree that designs and technologies which start with the intent to accommodate limitations to abilities often spawn solutions providing much wider benefits. Nor am I saying that we should not try to design solutions for to help accommodate specific limitations. In fact, I have been working on a theoretical framework and typology for assistive technology that address just this dynamic. My goal is that if we better understand that at some level all technology is assistive and that its benefits can be leveraged to the greater good, we can make progress more quickly and efficiently.

But I was making a different point in my original blog. Foremost, I was saying that we do Universal Design a disservice when we only present it as a way of dealing with disabilities. When presented in the fashion, many in the mainstream will marginalize the message. And that works against creating a world with fewer barriers.

Second, Bill says:

There are many (MANY!) other examples of well designed products and systems in mainstream use that appear to have been 'universally designed', but in fact were initially targeted for persons with disabilities - to 'accommodate' them.

Certainly there are. But that is a statement of current reality, not necessarily the ideal process. If from the start we had addressed the needs that Bills examples address with an orientation toward how the solution could more widely benefit, we might have gotten to that end state sooner. And I would be willing to bet that there are many things designed to accommodate a disability that have fallen by the wayside because they were obviated by better designed, more universal solutions.

Scott Rains pointed out a term "inclusive design" and I like the phrase "user centered design" which is one that resonates with Bill's comment that he begins his design process thinking about his users, not design principles. But this points to an inherent tension--are we designing for a specific user, or users in general? If we are talking about a product where a person has a range of options or the ability to customize, I think that user centered design is the way to go. Or when it is a group of people for whom you have a clear insight about common usage patterns or abilities. However if we are talking about multi-use situations and public spaces or common areas, UD principles are undoubtedly something that should guide the process from the beginning.

All of this off course flows into what motivates people to actually innovate or design--maybe the best designs will always come from the individual desire to create something that solves a personal need or desire. But nothing in that is hurt by increasing an awareness that the best designs are at some level universally applicable.

Universal Design is not just about disabilities.

2009-06-08T20:40:00.000-07:00

Blogger Shyamala is an industrial designer. In her recent post (http://pshyama.wordpress.com/) she does a nice job of illustrating a number of universal design principles through the thoughtful creation of three personas with disabilities. It’s well done, but does seem to miss one of the key aspects of universal design. UD is not simply about making things useful/usable by people with disabilities. Really excellent examples of UD improve usage for all people. From a picture of the Toyota prototype that she shows it is obvious that this would be a more usable design for someone with mobility issues. But I am 6’ 4” tall and am forever sitting down in a front seat, not realizing that my wife has moved the seat forward and banging my knees and twisting my back in the process. Sure, it would be nice if I learned, but I don't, and sometimes I have to say that it's not apparent that the seat is forward from a quick glance early in the morning. Also, this design looks like it would provide easier access to the back seat—something that full sized adults or school kids with heavy backpacks would benefit from. I can relate how this would be helpful to folks with impairments—I’m thinking of the times I’ve thrown my back out, when getting into a traditional front seat is a nightmare—but a good design like this is helpful for a much wider audience.

As Shyamala points out “Universal design is the concept or approach to be more precise, of making any design accessible and usable by as many people as possible, irrespective of the age, situation and ability.“ However, typically this gets relegated in practice to “designs that are good for people with impairments or disabilities.” When this happens, we all miss out and the UD message is weakened.

The reality is that many designs are what they are because of historical technological limits or for no better reason than a lack of comprehensive thought being applied during the design process. Also at play is the consumer preference for low price over quality of design and construction, even thought the two are not inherently in conflict. I think affordability should be the eigth UD principle.

When we focus only on accommodation, rather than universal benefit, we unfortunately undermine the full promise of UD. As unpleasant as it is, the reality is that things that are seen solely as accommodations for those with disabilities will wind up being marginalized by a large proportion of the population. On the other hand, if the same designs are seen simply as “easier to use” they will get wider appeal and acceptance. Best to think of UD as a movement to create a more functional, flexible, intuitive and forgiving environment for all of us. If that were achieved, the need to make physical modifications to homes would be greatly decreased.

What's that box? Senior social networking??

2009-06-03T20:55:00.000-07:00

What's that box to the left here, the one with the vintage photo of a guy scratching his chin? Its a Twitter gadget, showing my tweets. Might sond abit personal, but so it is, believe it or not.

I'm still not sure that Web 2.0 apps like Twitter will ever amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world (other than to make it crazier) but then again, they may be just the ticket.

Check out this article in the NY Times about social networking for the senior set.

http://tinyurl.com/lczw2n

I foresee tweets from the cruise ship. Tweeting family to say that all is well. A Twitter based device that sends an alert tweet if I don't press it on a regular basis. At least the grand kids would know about it.

Actually, while I expect Twitter won't last in its current form, and that little Twitter box over there will go away someday, I am a strong believer that technology will ease many of the burdens of age, and psychological isolation is certainly one of them. It's certainly not a panacea, but internet based socialization can certainly be a great boon for those who have limited ability to connect in other ways. Indeed, just like some youths and younger adults find it more easy to connect in a virtual world than a real one, there are probaby a lot of seniors who would sit isolated in a room full of people but who find that they have youthful, renewed ability on the social network.

What lesson will they learn?

2009-06-03T20:34:00.000-07:00

As we boomers age and take first hand seats watching how our older friends and our parents handle the journey, I wonder what lessons we will really learn. Many times, we have customers who call us out to discuss a plan for an aging or disabled relative, only to have the person’s condition worsen before anything can be done. Often, the loved one passes away. In some cases they have spent years dealing with frailty and diminished ability, with an environment that creates stress or unhappiness, but when they finally decide to take action, it is too late. In the current economy, this is happening more and more.

In just the past month, we numerous examples—a family that made some urgent modifications and bought a portable ramp that never got out of the box because their loved one died. A family who wanted to make home better for their father who was in their 80’s—he passed away just before we were to visit the home. He was surrounded by his grandchildren and passed quietly in his sleep—isn’t that how we would all like to go.

One lesson, the one I would like to see, is that we need to be proactive in order for adaptations to our homes to provide value. But I’m sure many others will see a lesson of “why bother.” Perhaps this will be resignation that the latter stages of our life will be short and not worth taking precautions for. And that will be true for some. But for many more, life could be safer and more gratifying if we plan ahead. Not just for things like walk in showers or masters on the main, but for basic requirements for sound roof, durable flooring and efficient HVAC.

As a generation, which will be the lesson we most often learn—act, wait or not bother at all?

Fix Housing or Sell Housing?

2009-02-05T06:24:00.000-08:00

I got interested when I saw the name of the initiative--Fix Housing First. At last, I thought, someone is paying attention to the problem of our aging housing stock. It's a waste to continually tear down existing housing and build new in its place (or spread out and use up more land) when so many properties could be repaired and upgraded, maintaining the character and livabilty of existing neighborhoods.

But alas, the Fix Housing First initiative has nothing to do with fixing houses, it is about incentives to buy and sell homes--a package of tax credits and low fixed rate mortgages for buyers of homes. Nothing for those who prefer to stay where they are.

Now, I recognize that we are all impacted by the decline in home prices, and housing market improvements will help everyone secure credit and retain wealth. Many seniors, in particular, have had to delay plans to move to assisted living or to be closer to family because of the slow real estate market, so a rebound would be particularly advantageous for them. A rebound in the housing market will be good for most existing home buyers.

But the cynic in me also knows that large scale developers are the most direct beneficiaries of a program like this. And I'm reminded that speculation and overdevelopment are partly at fault for the decline in home values, which were inflated by the real estate bubble. Rather than always pushing to use up more land and to build new, wouldn't it be nice to see incentives and programs that support people who invest in their existing property and who help improve and maintain the neighborhood where they live? That would be wiser and lead to more sustainable and effective housing for most.

More details about the Fix Housing Now initiative here: http://www.fixhousingfirst.com/newsite/index.php

Being willing to modify tradition

2008-12-05T06:44:00.000-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving here, hope you all did. The holiday feast has moved to our house over the past decade because I love to cook, and we seem to have no shortage of family and friends who are happy to contribute and eat. But there is a certain level of stress, and a tad bit of work, to pulling it off.

I was on the bus the other day and overheard a woman say “I think I’m getting to that “Bah Humbug” stage of life where I don’t want to go through all the holiday hassle. I tried to get my family to go out to a restaurant.” This got me thinking about a story some friends of mine used to tell. One year, they headed up to visit her folks for the holiday. It’s was about a 3-4 hour drive to Seattle from Portland in those days, and all the way up they were thinking about drumsticks, mounds of mashers and puddles of gravy. They were anticipating the joy of walking into the house from a cold day and smelling all those aromas melding into a sensory explosion. Imagine their concern when they walked in and smelled…nothing.

Seems Mom had decided that it was just too hard and too much stress to cook the meal the day it was to be eaten. She had a new microwave and she intended to use it. She had peacefully cooked up the components of the meal over the weeks leading up and carefully interred them in the freezer. Dessert was even apportioned and ready to go with dessert spoons on the plate. I’ve tried to banish the thought of Swanson TV dinners with this tale, to no avail.

But while it’s easy perhaps to make fun, thinking back I’ve come to realize my friend’s Mom had done a wise thing for her. She had gotten to a point where what was once easy was stressful; where what was expected of her was not what she wanted to do. So she took control and changed the rules. She decided that doing things the same old way got in the way of her enjoyment of the holiday and her family. It’s really an admirable thing, even if I shudder at the thought of serving turkey dinner from the microwave.

This is what we need to do as we age. We need to recognize that the old ways of bathing, cooking, storing things may have been fine when we were young but as we age, we have to modify our routines. And we should do it in a way that makes us feel proud, not beleaguered. We can use new designs and new technology to our benefit. A walk-in bathtub might carry a connotation, but it’s a safer way to get a relaxing soak. Web cameras and social networking sites can help us maintain contact with friends and family and even make new friends, even if we are less mobile. Removing steps to a sunken living room may be just the way to banish the old Rat Pack era design ethics and create a more modern, safer living area. And deciding that downstairs bedroom is really just as good as the one on at the top of the stairs is a great way to intelligently change the way we do things to adapt to the way we are today.

Tradition is great and we all love to remember “the old days.” But when it comes to traditional, inflexible and intolerant aspects of home design, the sooner we relegate them to memories, the better.

Mama said they were magic shoes. They could take me anywhere.

2008-11-12T07:03:00.000-08:00

Forrest Gump might not be quite the right image to toss out here, but the promise of Forrest’s Mama seems to be getting closer to reality. I’ve often said that technology will someday reduce the need to modify homes by helping people extend their abilities. Currently, for example, there are power chairs that stand and go upstairs. However they are cumbersome and according to one user I’ve met can be a bit frightening. The engineers at Honda keeps pushing this sort of technology forward and recently announced their prototype of robot legs. The legs are designed to be a “power assist” for people who are losing leg strength. For those of us old enough to remember, remember manual steering in a car? Think of this as power steering for your feet. It doesn’t change what we do, it just makes doing it easier and safer.

At first I wondered how you sit down, then I realized that you ARE sitting down. Technology like this might cause us to rethink a lot of things. While the prototype probably has a ways to go before it becomes practical for people who are infirm (how do you take the legs on and off?) this sort of technology has the promise of keeping people active and fitter longer. We tend to think of assistive devices as things for people who are already disabled. But as we boomers age, a large market will emerge in helping people prolong relatively normal activity. I met a man using a Segway for this purpose. Games to improve cognitive function are another example of this application of technology. Could robot arms to reach those things on the top shelf be next?

As Forrest said, “From that day on, if I was ever going somewhere, I was running!”

http://www.techradar.com/news/world-of-tech/future-tech/honda-uses-asimo-robot-legs-to-help-the-infirm-325930

Design your kitchen for the future.

2008-08-06T15:02:00.000-07:00

Yes, of course, I've been delinquent in posting again as the summer busy season has gotten underway, but here is a link to a just published article I authored for The Boomer Advisor publication.

http://www.advisor.com/boomer/story/design-your-kitchen-for-future

A well-designed kitchen can make cooking and entertaining more enjoyable. So if you're considering remodeling the kitchen, your focus is probably cosmetic. However, as you or your parents get older, there are safety issues to consider, too. This article gives some practical examples.

Aging in place is green.

2008-06-26T07:25:00.000-07:00

I came across an article yesterday that does a good job of covering a topic we've touched on here before--that aging in place is by definition a green approach to housing. There is so much stored energy in a home that you can never be greener by building something smaller, even if you downsize and use new technologies, so we shold be planning, designing and retrofitting our current homes to accomodate long life spans and a range of life situations. This article profiles Palo Alto architect Jon Stoumen. What I like most is many of the simple, lo tech, low cost design elements--like grape vines as heat reducing sun shades. And his philosophy about going green perfectly reflects our philosophy about aging in place--do what makes sense now, but plan for the future.

"We're going for universal access, so we've laid the groundwork for the elevator, but the clients won't need it for a long time. When they do need help getting up to the second floor, they'll be able to put the elevator in because we've planned for it with the infrastructure. It's one of the things about this house that will allow the owners to age in place. And I can't think of anything greener than aging in place. When you move, you throw a bunch of stuff away, new people move in and they remodel everything and throw a bunch more stuff away," Stoumen said. For that reason, the ground floor of the home is at grade. In the future, wheelchair access will not be a problem.

The model of planning for the elevator also follows Stoumen's idea that taking small steps toward greener living is a healthy way to think about environmental improvements. "People see all that you can do to make a home greener, and they think, 'I want it all now.' But not everyone can afford to do it all now. I think it's better to do what you can now and plan for the future," Stoumen said."

Read the complete article at :

http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/show_story.php?id=8459

Lifespan of modifications--its not kid stuff

2008-05-20T08:08:00.000-07:00

Because of In Your Home's consistently high ratings on Angie's List, we are getting a lot of calls from folks from outside our specialty--growing families who are looking to modify their home to accommodate the kids. Adding extra space, adding or updating a bathroom, removing hazardous conditions. Lots of similarity to what we do for our target population and we do often take these projects on. After all, business is business. But while we have long questioned why families are willing to modify for children and not for adults, a new thought struck. Comparatively, how long can we expect these modifications to be useful?

If we modify a room for a nursery, it's appropriate for five to 10 years, depending on how many children we have and at what intervals. By the time we get around to adding a separate bedroom or bathroom, maybe we get 15 years of active use. Same for a playroom.

But what if we are in our late 50's, our 60's or 70's and looking to modify the home for the long term? That playroom converted to an adult entertainment area, hobby or exercise space could easily serve us for over 20 years. A bathroom modified to be safer and supportive for adults will easily get 10 to 20 years of useful life. And, not only will these mods add value to the home (if done attractively and well,) but they have a higher payback since they can help us stay more independent and healthy so we can avoid the expense of assisted living and long or short term nursing care. And we can enjoy them so much--most people do tend to spend more time in their homes as they age, so its all the more important that the home environment be attractive and supportive for maintaining the activities we love--hobbies, cooking, gardening, etc. The earlier we do it, but more we will benefit from it.

You could easily say that you will get as many or more useful years from aging-in-place modifications, which indicates a better financial justification. Of course, we don't remodel for our young families just because of financial payback--we do it because we want things to be the best they can be during that phase of our lives. But many of us have this dismal thought that we are getting old and aren't worth investing in. Or it's that old refusal to acknowledge that while we feel 40 we are past 60 and need to think ahead. If we get past those thoughts, then the value of adding a shop, changing a floor plan or modifying a bathroom can make things the best the can be at these new phases of life. That makes a lot of sense--financially and otherwise.

Baby Bombs

2008-04-27T06:56:00.000-07:00

I was rather confused to read the opening lines of Sara Lin's April 25th article in the WSJ:

"Baby boomers brought ugly grab-bars to bathrooms and wheelchair ramps to hallways to prepare for growing old at home. Now they can take credit for products that people without infirmities could appreciate."

Now, I'm not sure why the ramp would be in the hallway, but more perplexing is that I don't know how boomers could possibly be responsible for such installations since most of them have yet to reach retirement age. Even if there is some demographic link (like installing them for their aging parents) those actions need not relate to the implied lack of aesthetic sense. When we couple these words with the later passage that "marketing these senior-friendly features before they're needed requires a delicate touch. The older consumers don't want to be treated like they're ready for retirement" I think we see the real conflict. "Before they're needed" is the operative phrase--people continue to think "age=infirmity and disability" and we want to keep that image from our minds as much as possible.

The real point of Lin's article is that product designer and marketers ae anticipating the aging of the boomers an bringing better designed and more supportive products to market. All well and good and long overdue. But if the boomers are truly going to redefine aging as so many pundits predict, our mindset is the key of what needs to change. Not through denial of the potential realities of age, but through embracing our older years. Whether we call it life part 2 or our second life or whatever euphemism we think will make it easier for people to swallow, the reality is that aging presents a variety of challenges and presents them in a variety of different ways to different people. The only way to prevent being victimized by this is to make up your mind to be proactive, prepare for contingencies, control your path and proceed with confidence.

One of my employees was driving with her niece and was asked the question "Auntie, why do I keep hearing about all these "baby bombs." A very cute Art Linkletter moment, but if baby boomers don't more proactively plan for what they want their latter years to be like, they will be "bombs," both in the sense of being dangerous to society and being flops.

Which brings me back to Lin's comment--modifications are about so much more than grab bars and ramps, and it is only because most of us don't approach designing homes to support all our phases of life that we have to put up with aesthetically ugly solutions. If we don't envision what we want our retirement environment to be like, then we are creating a situation where our home will constrain and fight us rather than support and nuture. If we want to define the aging experience in new ways, we must understand that our elder years are a time for continued growth and enjoyment and not just a withering away. But that will only be true if we create it and do so early enough in our lives. We need to ready ourselves and not leave it until something happens that makes it so we can't deny any longer that we are "ready." That's the way we boomers can be different than so many of our parents.

Aging in place and pets

2008-03-18T12:45:00.000-07:00

I don't normally read the lifestyle and advice columns in the newspaper. But while looking for the crossword puzzle, Deborah Wood's Pet Talk column caught my eye today and got me thinking. She writes about a choice of a dog for an 85 year old who lives independently and has recently had knee replacement surgery (read it here).

Her article reminded me that pet care can become a bit more of a demand as we age, but the companionship pets offer is a great contributor to healthy aging and well-being. At In Your Home we regularly do small projects that help older homeowners take care of their pets more easily. Some examples:

Pet doors. Giving Fido a little freedom to come and go without mom having to get up and let him out can be a good thing. You want to ensure the doors are properly installed to minimize heat loss and security risks. They now offer doors that unlock and relock automatically, triggered by a sensor the pet wears.
Pet runs. Having a secure run complements the pet door--we often install paver stones to create a cleanable, non-muddy surface for a pet run, keeping the dog from wandering into trouble and reducing housekeeping and gardening chores. And the pavers are easily removed by the next homeowner if desired.
Handheld showers. Not just good for mom or dad, good for washing the dog as well.
Food storage and dispensers. Keep quantities of food on hand but away from vermin, and they can minimize the amount of bending/reaching required.
Flooring choices. Commonly we are looking to make flooring smoother and more durable to handle walkers or scooters. Laminate flooring can be tough as (dog) nails, but is not so good for under a cat box or with a pet that has "accidents." This sort of standing moisture will penetrate the seams of most laminate and not only be hard to clean, but will swell and damage the laminate itself.
How about some hooks by the door to keep leashes handy and easy to grab? Or making sure Fido's bed is not located where it will be a tripping hazard? Simple steps like these can really help keep the joy of pet ownership strong.

I guess I'll have to read these columns more often if they make me think--after all, brain exercise is why I wanted the crossword puzzle.

The cost of falls

2008-03-08T15:55:00.000-08:00

CBS News reported yesterday on new survey findings from the CDC on the prevalence and risk of falls. According the report, 1.8 million report falling in the prior three month period--up from prior numbers of 5.8 million per year. Costs of these non-fatal falls is estimated at $19 billion. The CBS report notes that many senior adults may not take wise precautions because of "embarrassment"--but don't really touch on the fact that many safety modifications do not need to look institutional nor signify frailty.

Watch the news report here:

http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=3919186n&channel=/sections/health/videoplayer204.shtml

Dates set for 2008 Aging In Place week

2008-02-28T08:42:00.000-08:00

WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 25, 2008) – The National Aging Aging in Place Council announced the Fifth Annual Aging in Place Week, from October 13 to October 19, 2008. Building on the success of last year, where over 100 educational activities were organized throughout the country, this year is expected to garner even greater local support and attention.

http://guidetoretirementliving.com/wordpress/?p=1163

We've watched these events get more and more popular, it will be interesting to see the scope of this year's event--hopefully the trend of public and private sector participation will continue.

Aging-in-Place is about designing for dreams not just disability

2008-02-25T16:35:00.000-08:00

I bumped into a former work colleague the other day and we got to talking about career choices in later life. This sparked one of my pet issues—that when we think about aging-in-place modifications, too often we only think about infirmity and disability rather than creating spaces that support us in broader, more fulfilling ways. Michael and his wife Eve recently decided that her long standing passion for painting and sketching should be a business as well. But to accommodate this, they needed to make a few changes around the home.

When they first moved across the country to Oregon, they downsized from a 4000 square foot converted barn to a 1500 square foot efficiency home, a common pattern for empty nesters. But the size reduction was a little too severe and when they decided to launch the new business, they had to look for some additional space. They found a new home that met their needs fairly well:

There is a large loft that serves as the studio and instruction area. Being above the level of the rest of the home gives them a sense of privacy. The business and the home feel distinct.

While the home is not large, it does have three bathrooms, one of which is easily accessed by students from the loft area and further supports the sense that the business is a separate entity.

They did make some modifications to the home—adding skylights to the loft area, which not only provide natural lighting for the studio but can be opened to let warm air out at night during the summers. They replaced the flooring with a high grade of linoleum for ease of cleaning in the studio environment, and they added storage to make access to art supplies easy. This sort of customized storage is something we do for many customers, providing easier access to everything from hobby materials to medical supplies to kitchen pots and pans.

Storage was also added to the garage for more efficient use of space—while the new home is larger than their last, it’s still smaller than their old converted barn and they had materials that they did not need to have quick access to that could be stored in the garage.

Throughout this process they’ve made conscious choices about their environment. They are working very hard to stay fit and don’t expect that the stairs will present a major obstacle in the future. But if they do it’s a single straight flight, unlike the three flights of stairs in the old home. They’ve considered low maintenance and flexibility in the design of the space. They had to make some trade-offs—they’d like one more large room for living space away from the loft and the master bath has a "useless two person tub.” But overall the new home environment is well suited to this new phase in their life. This is what good aging-in-place design is really all about in my opinion.

And if you happen to be interested in Eve’s business, check it out at http://www.evekenyonsartdept.com/

Helping Boomers plan and adapt

2008-02-13T11:46:00.000-08:00

The Boomer Advisor just published the first in a series of articles we've written on how to adapt the home. The targeted readers here arethe boomers who are more typically going to be concerned about these issues for a parent or grandparent. But, as the article notes some of us boomers have started experiencing the need already or will soon.

In the article we take the design of a typical modern bathroom and point out a variety of issues and tips for better design.

Read the full article at the Boomer Advisor and let us know what you think.

http://www.advisor.com/boomer/story/remodeling-safety-bathroom?page=0%2C0

When it comes to assistive technology, expect convenenience and benefit to win out.

2008-02-10T08:39:00.000-08:00

At the National Aging In Place Council (NAIPC) regional meeting in Denver this week I heard Nathan Colburn of Accessible Solutions in Denver give a good discussion of assistive technology. Like us, Nathan feels that increasingly many needs can be met by technology rather than remodeling. But until the worst happens, and sometimes after, there are few people who will proactive seek out assistive technology.

The catch is that if you think about it, we all use “assistive technology” everyday. What about the television remote control? While it may not always be the easiest thing to master, there are not many people these days who get up and change the channels manually. (When I was a kid, kids were the assistive technology—I can still hear mom directing me to get up and change the channel for her. Young knees and all that.)

Another great example, the garage door opener—everyone in the audience who had a garage also had an automatic opener. Even simple things like eyeglasses and cell phones can be categorized as assistive technology. How about artificial joints? And all of them met with resistance and had their share of new technology issues, but we eventually embraced them because of the obvious benefits they offer. Convenience, safety, status--you name it. As we begin to embrace assistive technology for aging, the “mature market” will increasing experience the benefits. And that will lead to more widespread acceptance which will yield benefits for all.

Why bother?

2008-01-28T08:46:00.000-08:00

I came across the grab bar install shown in the photo the other day. Unfortunately, I did not have someone with me who could have sat in the tub and shown the impracticality of this installation. If you are lying in this tub, to try and use this bar your arms are high and above the plane of your shoulder which makes it impossible to gain leverage—believe me, I tried it. And, the grab bar is almost useless for getting down into the tub—probably a good thing because once you get down there it is not going to help you get back up. The bar also offers no support to someone showering.

This installation (in a hotel room) is clearly something that was done to meet at requirement or policy (or a desire to not obstruct the soap dish) without regard for the actual benefit of the user. Worthless—someone who knew what they were doing could have easily specified or installed the bars in a position that would have been more likely to be beneficial. Does anyone see a practical aspect here that I am missing? Or is this just a waste of stainless steel?

Another reason to like Hawaii

2008-01-21T17:08:00.000-08:00

I'll admit, Hawaii is one of my favorite vacation spots and we are planning to get back there this winter. But in addition to great views, warm water and tropical breezes, I came across this bit of news from the Aloha state that makes me like it all the better. Govenor Linda Lingle has proposed several tax relief meassures, one of which definitely relates to what I talk about all the time:

Aging in Place Tax Credit

To make it easier and more practical for seniors to stay in their own homes or with their family, the Administration is proposing a refundable tax credit of up to 50 percent of the costs to modify a personal residence to accommodate an aging or disabled family member. Examples of qualifying expenditures include grab bars in a shower or bathtub, ramps or inclines, and larger doorways for wheelchairs. The maximum credit would be $2,500 for a single taxpayer or $5,000 for a married couple. The tax credits would save residents $8 million per year.

Can we look to other states to be forward looking in this area? Or at least play catch-up?

Link to Governor Lingle's proposal

Another note about attitude and planning ahead

2007-11-29T06:33:00.000-08:00

I came across a couple of blog entries that spurred some thoughts related to the last post. The first opened as follows: "The accident that alters your life happens to you at the most unexpected moment in your life”. The author was primarily discussing issues for the disabled in public places, but notes that the aging population is also a large issue for design. What struck me about this statement was that it is true whether we are 40 or 80--few of us truly think that a disabling fall or other event is going to happen. And hopefully, it won't, but there is a difference between optimism and denial, between expecting the worst and actively looking for ways to avoid or mitigate the worst.

This ties into a statement by Elinor Ginzler, 55, AARP's director of livable communities: "We minimize risk in our financial investments. Why shouldn't we do it in our homes?" Elinor is quoted is a very good article that appeared in the Washington Post written by Annie Groer and available online at this blog (click here). She makes an excellent point--much of this is about risk management, just not risk management in a way we are used to thinking about it. AIP is about more of course--all the emotional benefits of staying independent--but perhaps it behooves us all to think of it more as risk management. That certainly puts a virtuous, non-indulgent tone on it. It helps convey that you have a range of options, all of which can help and deliver different benefits according to your needs and goals, just as you have different options for your financial portfolio. Most seniors would not invest in penny stocks, but not thinking about their aging-in-place needs is just as risky. and mitigating that risk can be as simple as just moving the coffee machine up to the bedroom, as one couple in the article did.

The first entry, author, by the way, is writing about Sri Lanka--another example of the global relevance of this issue. That blog is available here.

A Positive Attitude

2007-11-25T13:44:00.000-08:00

One of the things we often think about is that real success for Aging in Place will come when more of today's elders (and the boomers who will follow) develope a more positive attitude toward AIP modifications. I came across an article that put it well: "The key to aging in place, experts say, is to embrace rather than deny the need to adapt living spaces to meet physical changes as mobility, eyesight and hearing decline." This came from an article from the Washington Post, but I found it reprinted in the on-line version of the Hong Kong paper The Standard. Link to The Standard Article.

This article profiles the efforts of 90 year old Charlotte Goldstein to adapt her home to improve safety. The picture shows some basic handrails put up to complement the existing banister on her stairs. A very practical solution and a fairly common project for our company. But I am still more likely to encounter people who say they can make do without the second rail. I recently met with a woman who had already fallen and fractured a collarbone who refused either a second hand rail or any form of slip protection on her stairs because "it just wouldn't look right." However, I think that seldom are these reactions about cost or aesthetics--simple rails are not that expensive and I am as likely to get resistance from the well off as those who struggle on a fixed income. Plus they can be made made to fit in with decor and are easy to remove.

No, unfortunately it is the perceived weakness that such modifications are seen to represent that prevent "embracing" making changes to our homes. That and persistent denial even in the face of real need. Mindsets like these create the most resistance. Only when an increasing number of people see that the virtue is in preparing and that part of being able to keep your home is keeping it appropriate to your abilities and phase of life will a major barrier to successful aging in place fall to the wayside.

Aging in Place runner up for word of the year

2007-11-14T08:06:00.000-08:00

I came across this snippet yesterday--Oxford University Press gave a nod to Aging in Place as a runner up for the 2007 word of the year.

"Locavore" got the top honor (that means someone who tries to eat foods grown/produced locally.) In the justification is was noted that the past year as seen a strong trend in that direction (which I can confirm, it's certainly at evidence in our home.)

So, can we assume that the nomination of Aging in Place for the honor is also supported by a strong trend? Certainly the phrase is not a new one, it was becoming well used six years ago when we began work on In Your Home. Is it now rising to the awareness of dictionary publishers everywhere because of the trend's momentum? Let's hope so.

OUP defines Aging in Place as "the process of growing older while living in one’s own residence, instead of having to move to a new home or community."

I'll leave it to them as to why it is considered a single word.

http://blog.oup.com/2007/11/locavore

Making people whole again

2007-11-13T08:34:00.000-08:00

Last summer a client threw one of the those "This Old House" parties to celebrate the end of a large project. This happened to be for a couple moving to town to be closer to family. One half of the couple needs to use a power chair to get around and we created a number of features and design elements with her needs in mind--smooth flooring throughout the home, a bathroom designed around her needs, some basic modification to make the kitchen more useful, modifications to exterior paths, etc. She expressed her gratitude to our team with the following words. "In my last house I increasingly felt like an invalid. In this home, I feel like a person again."

We are doing more projects these days that are not for seniors or related to aging or disability. There are two primary reasons for this. One is that we have a top notch rating on Angie's List and get a lot of calls from people outside of our target demographic (Angie List is a great resource, we even use it to find subs.) The other is word of mouth referrals--once you do a good job and show that you are a reliable resource, friends and family members come knocking.

We're business people so we're practical. And we have a great crew that we are committed to keeping employed and busy. So we happily take on projects matching our skill sets regardless of the age or ability of the customer. A kitchen remodel for a growing family, rebuilding a dilapidated garage for the daughter of a client, a bath remodel for an executive woman. Creating a space that someone enjoys, or helping to remove worry by fixing a maintenance problem, is always enjoyable.

And as we so often say, aging in place isn't about grab bars and ramps, its a much broader vision of home environments that support our stage in life, and at its core that is a vision that fits with people of all ages and abilities--young families, fit and vigorous seniors and folks with impairments. So we try to leverage our experience and common sense into all the projects we do.

But we have to admit, the greatest joys come from our projects where we can impact a life like we did for this woman. Our personal spaces should be refuges and havens, not daily struggles to accomplish simple tasks. That's a very attainable goal for homeowners and one that will pay back the homeowner in a variety of ways. And it pays us in spades when we get this sort of appreciation,well beyond the financial earnings.

Care in choosing contractors

2007-10-29T11:36:00.000-07:00

We're not the sort of people who like to try to sell by creating fear, but I came across this video clip and thought I would pass it on. It underscores the risks people face when dealing with contractors. While it does not make the point, seniors can be at an even greater risk for this sort of scam artist. It's part of the reason why we started our business--to provide a recognizable, trustworthy resource for a wide variety of home maintenance and remodeling needs. Because we are insured, licensed and take extra steps like conducting employee background checks and training on customer service, we are seldom the cheapest option in town. While sometimes cheapest is a deal, often it becomes an expensive lesson or even turns into a risk for your family. For seniors on tight budgets and a sense of what things used to cost, the temptation can be strong to save money. But seniors can often be at greater risk due to decreased mental capacity, medical conditions, grief from a lost spouse and so on. And, as one of our customers said last week when scheduling a grab bar installation--"I don't want something that is going to pull out of the wall." Even a handyman who isn't a crook can unintentionally create problems by improper methods.

As this story mentions, not all states regulate contractors, so verifying the contractor can be a problem. They give some good tips in the video clip. They did not mention Angie's List--a great way to see what customers say about the company and how the company responds, which is often just as important.

The video is located at the link below, and you'll have to watch a commercial of some sort before it starts--the one I saw was for a video game.

http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-US&brand=msnbc&vid=b83da96a-d107-4f6c-ba7d-8d7c7bd3ba03

Personal Design vs Universal Design

2007-10-23T11:13:00.000-07:00

One of the things I've observed is that with all the attention on Universal Design there is becoming a certain dogmatic stance in some areas or by some people. Sometimes we seem to forget that UD is a set of seven principles to help guide decision making, not an enforceable code. When you are dealing with residential housing and a person's living space, universality can take a back seat to something tailored to the individual. We aren't talking about public buildings here, rather individual living spaces. Here are a few examples from work we did this summer.

The aging-in-place bias in redoing a bathroom for a senior would be to expand the shower and make it zero threshold in the event that a wheelchair is in their future. But we had two customers (both smaller women) who really wanted smaller showers--they felt more secure and stable in the small shower, the walls providing an envelope that makes it easier for them to maintain their balance. The new showers will accommodate a small shower chair if needed in the future, so there is that provision for flexibility. But never will a wheelchair be practical in the bathroom (in one of the homes, a wheelchair will never be practical anywhere.) So, while this might not live up to UD principles of equitable use or size and space for approach and use, for these particular homeowners it was the right design for now.

We like wall ovens over ranges--less bending and lifting, easier to see into. Separate cook tops allow for storing pots and pans where they are needed or even the ability to sit and cook. But for one customer, the wall often was wasted space that was better put to storage. So, the wall oven came out and the oven cavity was fitted with pull-outs. Separate cabinets were modified for a freestanding range. This resulted in an overall more functional design for the customer, even though we had to go with a less UD appliance. Sometimes the practical issue is how and where to apply the UD principles. In remodeling, there are typically trade-offs.

Split level counters are seen as a good idea to accommodate people of different heights or who need to sit. They find their way into a lot of kitchen designs these days. But for someone with a severe visual impairment, misjudging where one height ends and the other begins can result in spills and broken dishes. A common height counter, or one where the height differences are in distinctly different areas of the workspace, is the better solution for the individual.

Don't get me wrong, the attention on UD is great. Even in these designs, we employed UD principles where we could--lever handles, hand showers on glide bars in the shower, grab bars instead of towel bars that offer no support if grabbed, materials and designs that provide visual cuing, task lighting, storage that minimizes reaching, etc. But let's remember that it is a set of principles to help shape a design, not a set of routine solutions. Often in residential remodeling the design dictates are very personal.

A funny thing happened at Aging in Place week

2007-10-08T06:05:00.000-07:00

Last week was national Aging In Place week. If memory serves (a risky assumption at times) this is the fourth such event, fostered by the efforts of the National Aging In Place Council. As one of the first members of the NAIPC, we've participated in the events. Typically, they have been a forum to network with others involved in providing services to older adults and have been poorly attended by people actually interested in their own aging-in-place efforts.

This year was different. It was odd. It was surprising. There were actually seniors or their families in the seats! We spoke or exhibited at three events durng the week and two of these were very well attended with approximately 30 attendees at one and around 60 at the other. The events are getting better organized and that accounts for some of the draw I'm sure, but I also think more and more people are interested in the topic and, from their comments, are happy to find knowledgeable resources to advise them.

Our topic (modifying/adapting the home) also plays well because it tends to be a more positive or upbeat message than some of the other aging related topics. But the third talk was at a home and garden show (which was just a coincidence and not related to AIP week.) It was poorly attended--as I have seen other AIP talks at such venues be. I suspect that it's a topic that plays well to the right audience but does not yet draw well against all the booths and trade displays--its not why the attendees are there. But it is great to see the momentum building and more and more people acting practively to set a plan and maintain their independence.

Here comes the bandwagon

2007-09-26T10:26:00.000-07:00

It's been a very busy summer for us at In Your Home and I haven't posted for awhile. Lots of new customers, we've grown our crew, business is about double last year. While we like to believe this has a lot to do with how we run our business, it is partly a reflection of the growing demand for services to support folks choosing to "age in place."

This growing demand for services has been noted in a variety of recent industry reports and news stories. Combined with the slump in new home construction, lots of people are targeting residential remodeling and especially "aging in place" as a more robust segment of the housing market. All the attention is good because it will hopefully lead not only to better solutions but greater awareness and willingness throughout the population of how modifications can improve our lives as we age. But there is also a big risk in this goldrush mentality. Here are a few examples:

Untested products. Over the summer we discovered a new walk-in tub that had some nice features making it a great solution for a particular client. It was offered by a reputable company so we decided to give it a try. A week after the order was scheduled to ship, we were informed that something had gone wrong with the manufacturer relationship and the product could not be delivered as promised. We had to go to plan B, delaying the project for nearly a month, an inconvenience for our customer. But at least it was discovered before we had a situation with a faulty product. As more and more people target these sorts of solutions, we are likely to have many products that do not work or can't be delivered as advertised--experience and the remodeler's willingness to stand behind the work will be very important.
Supportive business practices. It's one thing to know how to replace a tub with a shower, it is another to have the work practices that protect the customer in other ways. For example, we currently have two customers experiencing the onset of Alzheimers. They have tried to hide our supplies and give away their belongings to our crew--things that we are accustomed to and have strict policies regarding. This is just one example where a true aging-in-place specialist will have the experience and work practices that meet the needs of this customer base, beyond basic remodeling skills.
Real Focus. It is increasingly easy for remodelers to say they do aging-in-place projects, but how many do they really do? I've spoken with CAPS designees who admit that aging-in-place work is only a small percentage of the work they do. Admittedly, we are doing more and more projects that are outside the aging-in-place marketspace--family members who want us to do work on their home, referrals from Angies List just looking for someone they can trust, etc. But our focus and the core of our business is on the senior population and it creates a very different reality for our team than for someone who doesn't focus there.
Informed solutions. Not focusing on this market space can also impact the quality of the solution--we sell as many or more aluminum ramps as we build wood ones because in many cases they are the better solution. One of our customers couldn't find a contractor who knew anything about accessible shower pans--they had designed a ground floor bathroom and living space with the idea that it would be accessible for visiting relatives, but everyone they dealt with kept trying to install a traditional shower pan because that is all they knew. A true specialist can address the full range of solutions and won't force fit inadequate ones.

These are a few examples that underscore the need to people to be aware of what it really takes to be a viable resource for senior homeowners.

Beware the easy fix for increased lighting

2007-07-23T13:25:00.000-07:00

One of the common issues we experience as we age is that we need more light to see clearly--especially the print of important things like medicine bottles, food packages, and, in my case, the daily crossword puzzle. The best way to get this additional lighting varies by what we need it for and by the condition of our eyes. But one solution that is never a good one is to shove higher wattage bulbs into fixtures that are not rated for them. Doing this can cause burns and fires.

I say this and many people scoff--what can be the harm of a brighter light bulb? Mountain out of a mole hill, they say. Well, witness this customer we helped out last week who called to have some water damage around a light fixture repaired. When our handyman got there, he found not water damage but heat damage. The owner had installed 100 watt bulbs in a closed fixture rated for 60 watt bulbs. Not only was the ceiling scorched and discolored, but the plastic junction box and wires were "crispy." The potential for a fire was very real.

Just a reminder that if more light is in your future, upgrade your fixtures to handle it. Also, consider putting them on dimmers so that you don't waste the wattage when you don't need it.

Study reinforces the value of home modifications

2007-07-06T05:30:00.000-07:00

I came across this data at Cynthia Lebrock's website. Cynthia does us all the favor of reviewing a lot of academic articles and providing a synopsis of the findings. The data came from a longitudinal (meaning data collected and tracked over a period of time) study by the university of Michigan. Researcher Kyung Sook June showed that while disabilities increased the likelihood that the person will relocate into an institutional setting, the presence of basic home modifications like shower bars, ramps, lifts, etc. decreased that likelihood. Interestingly, the presence of a caregiver did not decrease the likelihood of relocation to an institutional setting. Since this data set was collected a decade ago, a reasonable hypothesis would be that improved product and design solutions and increased acceptance of home modifications would make these findings all the more true today.

Temporary solutions can help caregivers

2007-06-21T09:27:00.000-07:00

When I did my bathroom options post awhile back, I didn't include a practical option for shorter term needs. We frequently get calls from families providing care for a loved one who, realistically, is in the final stages of being in the family residence or nearing the end of their life. A full bathroom remodel may not be needed or would create too much disruption. There are portable and temporary shower units available that can make life easier for a family in this situation or for someone who is recuperating from an injury or illness and needs a shorter term solution.

I've used portable showers out camping, but those aren't a solution in the home. But there are new solutions being designed that can make it practical.

FAWSsit is folding shower with an electric pump that can be set up in a room where there is sufficient space and an available source of heated water and a drain (sink, toilet, floor drain, etc) Laundry rooms and kitchens are obvious options. Since it can easily be folded and stored away, you don't need a dedicated space, making it possible to provide a shower to someone with greater ease and less stress on everyone. www.fawssit.com

Another resource is Shower Anywhere. These are more what I would call temporary rather than permanent shower solutions, so they require some dedicated space, but are an option when remodeling is not practical or in the long term interests of the homeowner.

Neither of these would be a great long term solution--having a home designed to have an accessible bath and bedroom on the ground floor is still the best precaution, but when that is not the case, a solution like these can certainly make life easier.

As we age one thing we can look forward to is more technology and non-traditional solutions like these to help us navigate this journey.

2007-06-07T11:42:00.000-07:00

I've seen some interesting data lately about strength and safety in later life. One was this article about strength training--actually making muscles "younger."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070523/hl_nm/strength_training_dc_1

And there is this bit out of London saying that older adults are net contributors to society, not the drain they are commonly portrayed as:

The future ... is not penury or dependence," said Clive Bannister, managing director of HSBC Insurance, which asked the institute to conduct the study on the elderly so it could learn about consumer behavior. "They have become turbos rather than the brakes of our community."
Researchers interviewed more than 21,000 people between the ages of 40 and 79 in more than 20 countries for the largest study of its kind. The aim was to explore attitudes about retirement and the sunset years.
Contrary to the commonly held belief that older people are draining state resources, the study indicates they are more independent and active in social and economic life than previously thought. (http://www.denverpost.com/ci_5971357?source=rss)

These are just a few of the items that paint a much more positive picture of aging. But then today I see this from an AP story showing that falls and safety concerns for older adults are are the increase. And this story only deals the the injury and death rate--just as concerning is how expensive and life changing a non-fatal fall related injury is
(http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/sns-ap-accidental-deaths,1,3008203.story?coll=chi-news-hed):

The rate of deaths from falls for people 65 and older rose 31 percent from 1999 to 2003, the council reported, which means that deaths from falls are increasing faster than the older population is increasing. A death within one year after a fall can be attributed to the fall. "We tend to see our home as our safe haven. The data tell us it's not," McMillan said, adding that families can take steps to protect the elderly from falls by removing hazards and installing stair rails and grab bars.

Deaths from falls climbed from 16,257 in 2002 to 17,229 in 2003, the most recent year for which data are available. The rate also went up, from 5.6 deaths to 5.9 deaths per 100,000 people.

My thought. We always say staying fit is your best fall prevention strategy. No amount of adaptation will prevent a fall for someone who is frail. But since we have this potential to stay stronger, more active and vital, shouldn't we consider proactive modifications to our home that will improve safety, or allow easier rehabilitation at home should we be unlucky? Research has shown that those who benefit the most from supportive adaptations are those who are still relatively fit. And my designing our environment to support us more completely, we can ensure that the changes are pleasing, not ugly stop gaps, and keep home a place we love being. Proactively designing a home environment for our later years is one of the things we can do ensure we stay active, stimulated, safe and comfortable and make the most of a positive future. When you envision your future, re-envision your environment!

Better home environments save private and public money

2007-05-22T10:51:00.000-07:00

You would expect me to advocate spending money on home environments that will suit us better as we age--after all, I co-own a company that creates better living spaces and am fostering it through a franchise strategy. But in this case, the company and strategy are an outgrowth of the need. I saw some very compelling data today in this article--from Tennessee but which happens to cover a lot of data about my home state of Oregon.

http://www.dicksonherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070520/NEWS07/705200397

Joe Easton, manager of Oregon's in-home-care support unit, said the average cost of in-home care there is $800 a month versus $200 a day — or about $6,000 a month — for nursing home care. "People would rather stay in their own home, and the cost is much less," Easton said. By adopting policies to get people out of nursing homes and into other types of care, McGuire says, Oregon spends about $400 million less in state and federal money than Tennessee each year. "You can serve a lot more people for a lot less money outside of a nursing home," McGuire said. "It just makes sense financially."

Imagine being able to cut your monthly living costs by over 85%--which is what the numbers above suggest. Wouldn't it be worth investing a bit in your home to facilitate that?

Options for more accessible showering and bathing.

2007-05-18T15:35:00.000-07:00

We find the bathroom is the area of the home that creates the greatest challenge for people--and not just because it seems we wait forever for someone to get out only to find they've used all the hot water. As we get older, the old design and using the bathtub may just stop being an option. What to do?

There are five basic solutions--here they are in order of cost.

1. Tub transfer seat and lifts. There are lots of products on the market now that can be used to help people get into and out of the existing bath. A tub transfer bench allows you to sit down outside the walls of the tub and then swing your legs up and over. With a set of grab bars and a hand shower, this can be an effective solution. However, many people find that they cannot easily lift their legs over the tub wall even when sitting, and controlling the water from a sitting position can be difficult for some. Another option in this vein is the tub lift, a motorized seat that is placed in the tub to raise and lower the person for tub bathing. You still have the issue of getting legs over the tub wall, and you use a few inches of depth in the bath, but it is an option. With any of these solutions, they are visually unappealing and make the tub less usable for others.

2. Tub Cuts. In this solution, the front wall of the tub is cut away and refinished to make an opening, allowing someone to step into the tub with only about a 4-6 inch step. Even that can be tough, and this approach most likely detracts from the home's value, but it is a popular low budget option. Be sure to disable the drain plug and ensure your drain is running clear so that you don't get a flood in the bathroom.

3. Tub replacement. Here we remove the old tub and put a shower unit in its place. You can even install a shower that is barrier free and wheelchair accessible. This is the time to upgrade shower valves to those that provide better tempurature control/automated settings. You can keep it this simple or make other modifications to the room to give yourself a cleaner, fresher bath--and remodeling the bath has one of the highest paybacks of any type of remodel. Be awre that one drawback is that unless the drain and vent lines are replaced, the new shower may not meet local building codes. We are finding that having one accessible shower in the house, preferably on the main floor, is a desirable feature when you go to sell.

4. Walk-in tubs. This is a specially designed tub with a door in it. You can open the door, walk in, and water tight seals keep water from leaking out. While the tubs are deeper than normal tubs, most people will still have problems getting their shoulders under the water. But if you like to bath, or if you could benefit from hydrotherapy, these can be great solutions. Drawbacks are that you may need to upgrade your hot water heater, and you need to be away of one important issue with the swing of the doors. Most of these tubs are built with door that swings into the tub--in part so that the pressure of the water holds the seal tight. However, if your should faint or pass out in the tub, someone coming to your aide would be unable to open the door, at least until the water drains out and maybe not at all because your body would block it. Out-swing doors, while less common, avoid this problem.

5. Integral shower floor. Maybe you have seen this in a hotel room, high end residence or magazine picture. In this solution, the shower drain is built right into the floor, so there is no barrier at all to entering the shower. In a remodel situation, this requires modification to the floor joists and is overall the most expensive solution since you typically will be replacing the entire bathroom interior. If you can afford it, it is the way to create an elegant, accessible bathing space that will truly add value to the home. The picture shows such a shower--this one happens to be shared between two separate bathrooms. It's hard to say which will actually cost more, this or the walk in tub. It will depend on the choice of tub, fixtures, finishes and the amount of structural changes required.

Remember that when trying to create an accessible bath, it is best not to try to squeeze it into too small a space.

So, which do you choose? Factors to consider are:

1. Your ability to pay. Let's be honest that many people cannot afford a major remodel and will need to make do with the lowest cost solution possible. If you are in this category, you should explore getting public funds--however they are limited and in our experience the approval process can take months, even a year or more.

2. How much longer you plan to be in the home. If you are not "fixing to stay" then temporary solutions are the best option. If you are planning to stay for 5 years or longer, a permanent solution with resale value makes more sense.

3. Your abilities today and your expectations for tomorrow. If you already cannot lift your legs over the tub wall, the temporary solutions are not much help. By planning ahead and creating an environment that meets your personal vision with an eye toward what you might need in the future, you will be better off.

4. The value of your home. There may not be much financial benefit to putting in a high end accessible shower in a home that just doesn't have the street value. On the other hand, if it is an amenity that helps you preserve your independence and feel good about your surroundings, then there are other measures of value. Think through how much you need or want this to pay off in increased home value vs. treating it as an expense you are willing to incur to feel good.

Age, health and preparing for caregiving

2007-05-01T08:07:00.000-07:00

Over the past couple of weeks there has been a lot written about the Health and Retirement study (discussed in this Washington Post article that indicated the maturing Americans may be less healthy than their predecessors as they approach retirement. This study of early Boomers reported more complaints of mobility issues such as trouble climbing stairs and failing joints as well as increase obesity and often related conditions like diabetes and heart problems. There are a lot of reasons why this may be occurring--living longer, more sedentary lifestyles, more stress and so on. I also think it supports one of the common views about boomers that they are less stoic and more focused on "me" than other generations, so the awareness and willingness to address physical concerns may simply be increasing.

But I find this information a greater cause for concern when coupled with another study showing a lack of preparation for and by caregivers. The opening paragraph of the news release says it pretty succinctly:

"Women expect to care for their aging parents and are willing to take on the responsibility, but few take steps to plan for it. A survey for Securian Financial Group, Inc. by Gestalt Inc., shows 84 percent of the women surveyed with a parent who had received care indicated no plans were made until care was needed."

The article goes on to cite limited financial resources as a compounding problem that will prevent care homes from being a viable resource for many and require that families and primarily women provide care in their own home (the study was funded by a financial services company, but the concern is valid.) Taken together, the two studies shine a light on just how important it is for people to start envisioning the type of home environment that will work for them in the future, whether providing care for a loved on or receiving care themselves.

Even though In Your Home assists seniors every day, we still find it rare to get the call from someone who is truly planning ahead. A review of our new customer inquiries from the past week or two show people calling with urgent needs because of an injury to themselves, a spouse or a parent. Off hand, I can think of one new client in the past month who has has obviously been modifying her home with the intent of making her caregiving for her mom easier and because, as she says, "this is where I'll spend my last years too." We've had more calls about new kitchen counters than we have about making smart modifications. Not that I'm complaining, the beauty, comfort and resale value of a space is always part of the equation with ability appropriate design. But it shows how far we are from being smarter about this whole aging journey, and if we are going to be the caregivers, if our wives and daughters are going to take on this role, then the sooner we think about how to make the home a better environment, the better off we all will be.

Aging in place—good for the earth?

2007-04-22T20:25:00.000-07:00

I opened up the Sunday paper today to a Home Depot ad listing 20 some things you could buy to be more environmentally responsible. Now, put aside for a moment the irony of encouraging consumerism in order to be environmentally responsible and turning Earth Day into just another shopping holiday. Many of the items, such as compact fluorescent light bulbs, are the sort of things that you are going to be buying anyway—going without lights is hardly a viable environmental strategy. So that ad got me thinking about how aging in place may or may not be sound, ecologically speaking.

One could argue that by keeping people in their homes, we are heating and lighting larger spaces than might be necessary and that we’ll have to create senior-focused transit options that will require more fuel, and so on with similar arguments to suggest that aging in place might be the best thing for mom but not for Mother Earth.

However, I think of that old maxim “reduce, reuse recycle.” To me, it fits well with aging in place. Rather than building new housing, we reuse the existing housing, reducing the consumption of natural resources and recycling our existing housing stock. Since many older homes tend to be smaller than the current 2400 square foot standard that older housing stock can be wisely modified and reused to the benefit of our older citizens and our communities.

And, keeping our seniors in mixed communities means we can share (recycle?) their experience and talents with younger generations more easily.

I believe that many of the best solutions for aging-in-place are also good for the earth. That compact fluorescent light bulb uses less energy and last 10 times as long, meaning seniors not only reduce their electrical expenses but also avoid getting up on stools and ladders to change bulbs as often. Similarly, when installing new appliances or heating systems for safety and comfort the homeowner will likely find that the new versions are much more energy efficient as well. Showers are not only more accessible, they use less water, another double benefit. The same can be said of lower maintenance landscaping.

I suspect that as we go further down this path, we will find more and more synergies between environmental stewardship and creating healthy, safe and comfortable homes and communities for our aging population. Especially if we remodelers strive to be as green as we can.

A good post about sensitivity to universal design

2007-04-12T08:17:00.000-07:00

I read this post on another blog today and thought I'd link and comment here. The posting can be found at http://house.seniorwomen.com/?p=25

Some key things I noted:

The author's post underscores that the issues of accessibility are important not only for people with permanent disabilities but also for temporary impairments--an accessible house is flexible and wise for a wide variety of people at different stages in their life.
I like the comment that automatic "touchless" faucets are smart not only for seniors but good to keep the grand kids from leaving the faucet running. Underscores that many of the things we think of as "handicap" are much more universally helpful.
The author's acknowledgement of Iraq war veterans is another (sobering) reminder that the needs for accessibility and universal design are widespread and varied.
I particularly like the experiential design element where she toured the framed-out home in a borrowed wheelchair, uncovering issues that would prevent or complicate future use of a wheelchair. No one likes to change the framing, but better to change it then than after the home is finished. Seniors who are purchasing a new home for retirement could benefit from doing the same and then making the necessary modifications before moving in.

Trouble in Snowbird country.

2007-03-29T12:59:00.000-07:00

So, I’m down in Palm Desert with my family for Spring Break. We’re renting a very nice condo in a very nice community where the typical income and age of the homeowners are well above average. It’s snowbird country for sure. Driving around the neighborhoods you see some of the advantages of desert living—minimal yardwork, lots of homes with accessible front entrances and no stairs, the ability to drive your golf cart to the store. Why then, are the bathrooms so atrocious?

This condo has two beds/two baths. Ideal for empty nesters who might want their kids or friends to come visit. But both bathrooms have:

Fixed shower nozzles that are mounted about 5 1/2 feet high—requiring an over 6 foot person like myself to do back bends or contortions to get my head under the shower. (Okay, I’ll admit that this is a pet peeve of mine and puts me in a dark mood about the bathroom altogether.)
Tubs that have to be stepped into for a shower but are hardly big enough for a bath.
Push/pull knob style shower valves that require tons of finger strength to turn them on and a great deal of dexterity and persistence to get them to a comfortable setting.
No grab bars—though I can see from the caulked holes in the shower tile there once were some. Looks like they were installed with plastic anchors.
Sliding glass shower doors that further make it difficult to climb into or out of the tub.

There are other things I'm not fond of, like having to walk through the master bedroom closet area to get to the bath or having toilets tucked into alcoves. Even without the fact the doors conflict and bang in to each other, these designs just complicate accessibility. But that's not the big issue--a bathroom serves two primarily purpose and design like this makes one of them difficult for many people.

The bathroom actually has some good features—like a place to sit at the counter and natural lighting over the tub. Someone was thinking about livability when they put in those touches. All the more amazing then to see such poor design in homes that are ostensibly built with senior residents in mind—and which are used as rentals where a wide variety of people with differing abilities will visit.

There is little that universal about this design, other than universally bad. Lots and lots of progress to be made in this regard, even down here in Snowbird country.

And I’d like to have a choice word or two with the contractor who saved 50 cents worth of pipe on the supply to the shower nozzle.

The emotional benefits of home modifications

2007-03-13T08:46:00.000-07:00

Something people often wonder is “are home modifications effective.” This is usually asked in the context of do they help stop people from falling. But I sat in on a presentation at the recent ASA/NCOA joint conference in Chicago and it reminded me of the wider benefits that home mods can have. The presentation was based on a study focused on the value of home mods in helping people who are aging with a disability to stay in community. But a lot of the findings addressed the emotional benefits of home modifications. In a nutshell, their research showed that modifications helped the homeowners feel more freedom and empowerment—they got out and did more on their own time schedules than those people who had not had needed modifications.

Particularly memorable was the power of bathing independence, which we see regularly in our business. Study participants who could sit in an accessible shower and “let the water wash over me” noted its restorative powers—they not only felt better about their hygiene, but since showering was easier, they actually had more energy to get out and do things. Our clients tell us the same thing all the time—rather than a struggle or an event fraught with worry, an accessible shower or walk-in tub makes bathing comfortable and enjoyable again. It just makes you feel good all over. The researchers noted that other modifications can have a similar effect.

The research was conducted by Andrea Gossett and Joy Hammel from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Practical mods—what makes them practical?

2007-02-28T16:10:00.000-08:00

Last time we rambled on about some types of modifications that can be practical. But when in the course of one’s life does it make the most sense to worry about such things? In some research we did, nearly half of a 55+ sample didn’t disagree that retirement housing is something we don’t have to think about until much later. That’s why we commonly see the need appearing at specific, individual life events.

Life events are easier seen in others than in ourselves. We see the need to make things easier for children—our, or our grandkids. We see the need when someone else struggles to make do. But we tend to miss the need when it is ourselves—maybe we are too focused on our own emotional response to our changes. But life events—positive and negative—should be the natural triggers. Here are a few life events that should cause us to pause and think about our “built environment”:

Buying your retirement home. So many times, we’ve hear of someone who bought, built or remodeled the home they plan to live in for their retirement and they gave not a thought to accessibility, caregiving. No planning to put a grab in the shower or even considering if they could easily get out of that deep jetted tub or off the lowboy toilet they liked. Buying a home for your empty nester years and beyond is the time to ensure you have the basic provisions for the future. And, if the home does not have the basics, get them before you move in. Later, it will be a heck of a disruption to your life to retrofit them.

Early warning signs. Unfortunately, some of the most enlightened people we deal with are those who have assisted a loved one through a disability or degenerative condition. Being a caregiver can be a wake-up call that helps them to see that one’s home does not need to be such an unforgiving environment (the fifth principle of universal design is Tolerance for Error, which should be expanded to cover the “I wish I had thought this through before” type of error.) When you first get word that you have some issues, that is the time to modify so that your world is as forgiving as possible for as long as you have the ability to enjoy it.

Time for you. What is wrong with having what you want? A home you enjoy and can be proud of rather than curse and be frustrated with? As you look to spend more and more time in your home—or maybe a second home—you should look at what you want to do to make it yours. And while you consider the aesthetics, think of your future and what will make this home a haven for as long as you want it to be one. If you are smart, beauty and future function will merge wonderfully.

Often, it also just makes more financial—as well as emotional—sense to maintain and modify your home. Sounds like a good topic for next time.

Proactive or practical?

2007-02-20T06:40:00.000-08:00

So, in the last entry we broached the topic of “what is practical” when it comes to home modifications for aging in place. Is “practical” creating an aging-in-place showplace that covers every contingency you might experience? We’d say that’s a demonstration home for ideas and technology, not a real life home for everyday people. Even when we created our two project homes here in Portland, we did not try to cover every possibility and contingency. Instead, we tried to ensure that the basics were covered, which we see including:

Good provisions for accessibility. We like the “visitable” rule that says someone in a power or wheel chair can get in to the front door, in to a bath, and through the kitchen. This will cover anyone who has friends who become dependent on a set of personal wheels, or themselves if they temporarily are in a wheelchair. That’s something that will happen to most of us if we live long enough.

Well thought out lighting. Most homes were built a) with mostly just switched plugs, which is economical b) with a single domed light fixture in the middle of each room or c) before electricity. Modern lighting designs apply to only a fraction of the available housing stock and mostly at the high end. Scene lighting is an excellent concept that we advocate if you can afford it, but most people benefit from some simple retrofits that include lighted switches, pathway lighting, task lighting and more indirect/reflective light. Oh, and don’t forget making the most of natural light where you can.

Reduction of effort. Eventually, even Jack LaLanne has lost some of his vigor (but what an inspiration he still is, eh?) For most of us, it happens long before—few of us will tow 70 people in 70 rowboats to celebrate our 70th birthday even without the shackles. Making it easier to reach, to get things stored down low, to go up and down stairs, even to open the windows can make life at home a bit more enjoyable and safer. Admire Jack, but be realistic about yourself.

Smarter bathrooms. We still say that the shower grab bar will be like the seat belt. In the early 60’s, they were an option. Now, try buying a car without them, much less ignoring those “click it or ticket” rules. Every shower should have well designed grabs for getting into and out of the shower—or for hanging on as we wash the bottoms of our feet. Think grabs are a sign of being an invalid? Just watch some 6 or 9 year olds—they’ll grab ‘em without care. As time goes by, more people will accept them as natural--even if they are just the plan jane stainless, public restroom type. But you should see the beautiful ones you can get these days. Of course, grabs are just the start--walk-in tubs, barrier free showers, doors wider than 28 inches, etc all contribute to having a bathroom that serves you well for a long time.

Oh, there’s more. Lot’s of simple things that can be done around the home to just make life a bit easier and to help preserve your independence. But how to decide what’s really needed? What’s practical?

Next time, we’ll talk about when (which situations) make it practical to be proactive.

Will boomers be more proactive about home mods?

2007-02-04T11:33:00.000-08:00

I was chatting with an old friend yesterday and we got on to the topic of a long planned addition to his home. Among the several reasons he was questioning the wisdom of the expense was that part of his goal was to build an accessible bathroom. Being hale and hearty today, they may not need such a bath for many years, if ever. This got me thinking about the whole “Boomer revolution” as it applies to home modifications.

One of the conventional bits of wisdom about the home modifications is that the Baby Boomers will get more proactive and be more willing to make (demand?) changes to their environment. But how do we know this will occur? Will we really take a different path than our parents or will we struggle to retain youthful ways and delay addressing practical realities? It's hard to say what the effect of growing older will be on boomers, but we can be sure there will be conflicting forces. Sure, Boomers has a group are seen to have been less stoic and more focused on "self actualization." But prior generations have been just as concerned about maintaining their independence and being in control of their destiny. The problem is, as we age, too many of us lose some of the motivation and give up at the realization that our destiny is never fully in our control. Even if we avoid a crippling condition like ALS or Alzheimer's, we are going to age and it will affect our abilities. But are any of us going to be more receptive to kids harping "Dad, you shouldn't be climbing that ladder”? I suspect this is less an issue between generational classifications and more a reflection of individual personality and family dynamics.

Its probably a good bet that many boomers will fall victim to the same patterns--postponing making hard choices for too long, just like their parents did. Oh sure, modifications will be a lot more commonplace, just because a lot more of us aging into our 70's, 80's and 90's will create the demand. This demographic swell will create one big difference from today--more and more homes will have had the necessary modifications. Once that happens, the idea of adapting the home environment to our needs will be more commonplace and will swell demand further. And since more of us will have helped our parents make these decisions, it should be more natural to consider getting support to keep the home maintained and to make modifications--when we get to “that point.” But these changes are not because of an inherent difference in the Boomer mindset. It will be interesting to watch will be if boomers are really any more proactive in this regard than their parents.