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The Pinecone
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July 2016 • 5 •
SAFETY
Bei ng Consc ious
Of You r
Remaining safe in the home is a priority for everyone at
any age. Accidents do happen, but there are ways for us to
prepare to minimize the risk of a potential accident. Small
changes or modifications can have a big impact and by
being safe at home, you are able to remain active outside
the home!
Think about the three things that impact everything we do:
First, your physical ability to complete every day tasks.
Second, the environment or home setting in which we live.
Third, the activities that we want to complete.
As you think about things that you do each and every day,
think about how you do those tasks and if anything about
them may be unsafe. For instance, do you hold onto towel
bars to get in and out of the shower? This could be unsafe as
towel bars are not rated to hold weight. Consider improving
your balance and lower body strengthening as well as
contacting therapy for potentially needing grab bars to be
installed.
Another good example is where do you get dressed? Do you
sit on the bed or in a chair? Does the chair have armrests that
allow you to push up from the chair to stand? Is the height
of the bed or chair too high or too low? Consider modifying
the bed or replacing the chair to one that fits you well and
has armrests to allow you to safely move from sitting to
standing by allowing you to use your arms to push up from
the chair. Small changes like this can have big impacts on
our safety in the home.
Please join us on July 11th at 10:00 am in the PAC to discuss
additional items regarding home safety. Please feel free to
contact Jason Sparrow OTD, OTR/L or Allyson Boykin at
901-366-1819 if you have any questions.