Livingston Reporting - page 338

Looking for a new home is time consuming and downright painful.  Imagine however if you were looking for a home that needed to be handicap accessible. Your laundry list of requirements is totally different than the average homeowner.  It is important to find a home that can be easily altered to become wheelchair accessible if you have not found one that is already suited for the needs a wheelchair imposes.

Requirements to make a home more wheelchair friendly start with the entrances and exits of a home.  In order for a home to be accessible there must be at least one entrance equipped with a wheelchair accessible ramp.   It is a good idea that you make all of the homes exits and entrances safe for wheelchairs to provide comfort for the individual to get in and out easily.  It is easier than one might think to add a ramp off the deck in a backyard and to add threshold ramps to garage entrances and exits.  Also, wheelchair accessible ramps are made to enhance the beauty to any front porch area.  The more ways to get in and out of the home the safer and more comfortable a wheelchair bound individual will feel.

In dealing with exits and entrances it is important to remember the width of a wheelchair and the turn radius required to move freely in and out.  Make sure all door and hallways, including vestibules are at least thirty-six inches to provide adequate space for wheelchairs and walkers to maneuver.  If hallway doors are too tight it can help to reverse the swing of the door out to provide an extra few inches through the doorways to rooms throughout the house.

Wheelchair access throughout the home is only one issue that handicap people face within their own homes.  Issues that are just as important are items such as accessible electrical outlets, accessible smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, along with making sure fire extinguishers are all within reach of a wheelchair user.  Simple tweaks can make sure that items are made to be convenient for all household users.  Smoke detectors can be wired into the wall and outlets can be placed higher up making the reach less of a burden.

I mentioned earlier wheelchair accessible ramps and think it is important to also mention that outside ramps will need to be maintained in regards to snow and ice.  There are two ways in which this can be done, manually or by installing special heat coils designed especially for the prevention on snow and ice build-up.  Otherwise ramps become obstacles not only for the member of your household in a wheel chair but also those maneuvering the ramp by foot.  Keeping a clear path in and out of your home is of up most importance.

In keeping your home accessible for wheelchair use it is important to remember that rugs and carpet add to the difficulty of maneuvering.  Furniture should be place so that a thirty-six inch path is clear with a turning radius of at least five feet.  The more open the floor plan, with the least amount of clutter is the best option for a home that needs to be handicap accessible.  Threshold ramps can be installed to make transitions less difficult from room to room.

A home that is wheelchair compatible would have a wish list of a thousand things to make life easier.  Levered door handles, roll in showers, removable shower heads, grab bars and appliances only those with front controls and front access however we know this is not always going to be possible right off the bat when purchasing a home.  When the search begins narrow your must haves down to include a list of things that a home can have that can be easily converted.  The house might not come all together but at least make the work that you need to put into it minimal with purchasing a house that comes with tools that will make it easier.

When we found out my father had a stroke we were devastated.  As the patriarch of our family he always provided support for all of us.  How in the world are we going to be able to take care of him? Seeking out the right support was important for my mother and fathers needs.  We needed to make sure the house was in order and accessible for his wheelchair and that he could be as independent as possible.  Multiple times he told us that he would rather pass away then to become dependent on anyone else.  We knew in order to keep his sanity along with moms things in the house needed to change.

We got advice from other wheelchair users and found many independent people that are mobile dependant on a wheelchair.  Their tips help narrow down specific targets for us to take care of out of the gate.  Knowing that we will have other modifications down the road does not scare us it is just the knowledge that his perception upon coming home has to be that of an independent lifestyle or he will fall into a depression.

The bathroom was the first area of interest.  We knew this is where my father would want the most independence and privacy.  We started by removing the bathroom door and replacing it with a curtain that easily glides closed.  Next we replaced his low lying toilet with a new toilet designed with extra height for the ease of transferring it would provide him.  Installed on the side of the toilet was a grab bar that was actually bolted to the floor for the ultimate amount of stability.   Next a removable shower head was put into place along with a bath chair and new easy to maneuver faucets.  The sink was at an acceptable height already but the turn knob faucet was replaced with a levered one and removed the cabinet doors so that we could “pull” right in.

People warned us that carpet would be difficult for his wheelchair to maneuver on.  To remedy this we went out and purchased plastic floor runners and strategically placed them throughout their home.  The throw rugs that had been placed around the house were removed.  The plastic will make sure the wheelchair is met with little resistance when moving about the home.

My father did not want to sleep apart from my mother.  He convinced us that a hospital bed was not in his best interest and we agreed.  In order to help him get in and out of bed we had another grab bar installed into the floor along the side of his bed. A large platform was constructed to help him transfer onto the bed without too large of a gap between the bed and the wheelchair.

Getting in and out of his home was another issue.  We purchased a metal handicap ramp.  This was easily installed and will not only be easier for my dad but as my mom ages will take pressure off her knees that the stairs would present in the future.  Handicapped ramps were easy to find and inexpensive.  For the door walls in the home we were able to purchase mini handicapped ramps called threshold ramps.  The thresholds will not be an obstacle with these in use.

In order to keep him active on his computer and crosswords we bought larger size writing utensils and an extra large button keyboard. We were also informed that fine motor skills would be difficult so purchased an electric can opener and an electric jar opener so that he could cook independently.  It was also brought to our attention that a crock pot would be the easiest way to cook for him and a food processor instead of a cutting board.  The other thing we did is bought him a cell phone so that he could use the speaker and could take it around with him as he goes about the house.

Truly the point of looking into making the house more accessible for his wheelchair is to make him independent.  My mom is not home all the time when he is around and will not be able to cater to his every whim and he really would not like this even if she was.  There will be things that come up that are not a simple as installing a handicapped ramp or levered faucet and we will be there to come up with unique solutions to keep him mobile and independent.

It wasn’t until two years ago that I realized how easily shattered mobility could be.  Out on a family sledding trip my son decided he would fly down the sledding hill as I was walking up.  When he hit my leg going full speed on a blow up tube I knew immediately that my leg would never be the same. When all was said and done I had pins and plates holding my ankle together and my fibula was trashed.  I would not be walking for three full months.

When it finally hit me was when I got home after surgery and realized that maneuvering around our home on crutches and a walker were near impossible.  We have two different areas in our ranch home that have a step up to access the next room.  How was I ever going to access the bathroom without crawling?  I knew modifications were needed if the next three months were going to be bearable at all.  My family and I got to work planning and executing plans to make life smooth for all of us.

Our home is a traditional home.  The builder never had to consider that this home would need to be made handicap accessible.  As with most homes built today they are made today disabilities and limitations to ones mobility are not considered because that is not what the main stream needs.  However as we age or in my situation, are disabled, needs change and our homes need to be modified.  The first step for our home was the step up in the garage from where we park the car to where we enter the home.  My husband made a simple platform wheelchair ramp. I was able to slowly crutch up, the incline was less steep than most so it was easy for me to use with my crutches.

My next issue was the two step ups in our home.  In order to use the bathroom or get to the kitchen area I would have to maneuver around steps or have a wheelchair ramp installed.  My girlfriend rented me a scooter that accommodated my bad leg so I could just drag it along instead of using crutches so this was super nice.  We just needed to figure out a way to get me and the scooter up the steps in the house.  We solved the step up to the bathroom with a wheelchair threshold ramp.  It eliminated the small step completely and made using my scooter to get to the bathroom a chinch.

The next bigger obstacle was the main step in the living room.  First and foremost our furniture needed to be rearranged because getting around was too tight.  Wheelchairs, scooters, and crutches any aide used to help the disabled needs clearance to maneuver.  My husband had to construct a wheelchair ramp to accommodate the scooter and me with a very slight incline.  He managed to do this using wood that we could reuse later and rigged the step up to accommodate not only me but regular foot traffic.

We realized that for this home to accommodate us in the future, as we aged, we would have to make more permanent changes to the layout of our home.  This experience was an eye opener and I am certainly glad that we are able to have a bit of foresight into the needs we will have as we age.  This is needs after this experience with my leg.  The issues with the steps were only one battle that we faced.  Needless to say some bathroom renovations will be taking place and some major flooring renovations.  Hardwood floors are going to be put in throughout the place because carpet, we have found, makes mobility difficult using crutches, walkers or a scooter. Lesson learned.