Maine has the oldest population in the country with a median age of 44.8 years. Condominium residents are on average older than non-condominium residents. Of more importance, 23% of Maine’s population is over 65 years old. The most concerning statistic is that 30% of these 65+ year olds report falling within the last year. These non-fatal falls in Maine are associated with specific medical costs of over $255 million dollars each year leading to reduced future mobility, feelings of isolation, and reduced emotional well-being.
Most of us never plan to end up in a nursing home. Most of us say we want to live the rest of our lives at home in our condo unit. It is only natural. Home gives us freedom with dignity. Home allows us to make our own decisions. Home allows us to maintain established friendships and community ties. However, in the future, our homes can limit our ability to take care of ourselves, as well as be dangerous. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, “We shape our homes; and afterwards, our homes shape us.”
So, what are we going to do? Many senior citizens downsize their living space to minimize maintenance headaches that went with the big family house. A recent ASID ‘Aging in Place Survey’ found age-related difficulties in maintaining a safe home was the reason for 57% of all relocations in the country. But even if you move to a smaller condo unit there still can be interior barriers to safe aging in the unit. Condo units can be modified to allow us to live our lives in comfort, in safety, and with a minimum of assistance.
There is a movement across Maine and around the nation to do just that. One of its primary tools is Universal Design. This is a philosophy of design used by architects and other forward thinking senior care practitioners to develop interior unit spaces and home products to be useable by all people to the greatest extent possible
The three most important fall-potential restrictions in a condo unit are (1) multiple floor living; (2) hallways and doors not wide enough for wheelchairs and walkers; and (3) front entrances with one or more steps. Only 4% of all condominiums in the country have none of these physical restrictions. Only 1% of the nation’s condo units have the next two most important age-related features, namely, lever handles on all interior and exterior doors and light switches and electrical outlets reachable from a wheelchair.
As obvious as some of these recommended changes to the condominium environment are, people hesitant to make them. Some of the delays are due to condo document restrictions and financial circumstances but more often it is our not wanting to recognize our mortality and the limitations future ageing will bring. This reaction is true for many human conditions. Change cannot occur until we accept what it is. The good news is, we do not have to do it ourselves.
Condominium living provides a unique opportunity not given to an individual homeowner. You have a community that can work together under proper leadership to help unit owners avoid falls in their unit or the common areas through training and education of the available resources for unit owners to age safely in their units. It is more than just throwing out the unit’s throw rugs. Insurance companies and other agencies can provide the teaching materials at no cost, and many condos already have club houses or common areas suitable for this training.
Delivering an effective message is always about the audience first. Knowing the concepts, words, and phrases will make the participants more willing to implement a fall prevention program. Sometimes aging comes on like a fast tide due to health or other circumstances and sometimes it sneaks up on us requiring family members or friends to gently remind us of the upcoming physical and mental limitations the future will bring. To create a fall-prevention environment, a positive message is important. Negative messaging can isolate older unit owners and contribute to a fear of falls. Learning how to discuss fall prevention properly will go a long way in gaining acceptance of the program.
There are skilled professionals to guide the community along the way to change. The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) in conjunction with AARP has developed a design designation called ‘Certified Aging in Place Specialist’ (CAPS) for remodeling contractors and design/ build professionals interested in Universal Design and other age-related design methods.
To conduct your own self-survey of the age-related problem elements in your condo unit, AARP has published the AARP Home Fit Guide. This checklist can be downloaded free from the AARP web site. To further help, the American Occupational Therapy Association has developed a program called ‘Certification in Environmental Modification’ (SCEM) to allow Occupational Therapists (OTs) who are licensed healthcare professionals who can provide a community assessments of the improvements or changes needed for specific condo units and common spaces to be suitable for aging in place.
Future renovations in any condominium should consider these and many other age-related improvements for incorporation into the project to minimize costs. This type of thinking should be present at all discussions with your contractor to ensure all future changes minimize age-related restrictions throughout the condominium. With some forward thinking, our future will be what we want it to be.
Written by Jack Carr, P.E., R.S., LEED-AP, Senior Consultant Criterium Engineers
Published in Condo Media