Seniors are at a higher risk of a fall due to health conditions, side effects from medication, and changes in balance, strength, mobility, coordination, and vision.

However, unsafe living conditions and safety hazards in the home can also greatly increase an elderly loved one’s risk of an accident or injury.

Placita In Home Care is committed to providing families in our community with the tools, support, and guidance needed to ensure senior safety in the home.

Our home safety evaluations in Southern Arizona can support safe, healthy aging in place by identifying safety hazards and recommending key upgrades, repairs, and improvements.

What Is a Home Safety Evaluation?

A home safety evaluation is a professional assessment of your home to identify hazards that increase the risk of a fall, accident, or injury.

Our evaluators have extensive experience, and use a detailed, comprehensive checklist to inspect the interior and exterior of your home.

Our goals are to help you uncover hidden safety hazards, improve the comfort and safety of the home, and reduce the risk of accident or injury.

When and Why You Need One

You need a home safety assessment to identify and fix potential hazards in your home. Doing so can prevent falls and injuries and support your loved one’s ability to age in place in the comfort of their own home.

These evaluations are particularly important for the elderly, people with disabilities, and anyone else who may have trouble getting safely around their home.

Some signs you should consider scheduling a home safety evaluation are:

Frequent falls or near-falls
Changes in vision, hearing, or mobility
Recent injury, illness, or surgery that affects balance, flexibility, coordination, or mobility
Taking medications that could increase your risk of a fall
Steps, stairs, or changes in levels that could affect the ability to safely navigate the home
Damaged or outdated areas of the home that could make it unsafe
Poor lighting, clutter, or trip hazards in or around the home
Trouble reaching items that you use on a daily basis
Difficulty keeping up with housework
Inability to control the lighting, temperature, or other aspects of your environment because it’s hard to reach or use switches or control panels
Malfunctioning safety equipment like security cameras or alarms, door or window locks, smoke and fire alarms, or carbon monoxide detectors
Increased forgetfulness or early warning signs of cognitive impairment or dementia
Diagnosis of a neurological condition or debilitating or progressive illness or disease
Trouble handling the activities of daily living like bathing, toileting, hygiene, grooming, dressing, and meal preparation
Regularly forgetting to take medication, lock doors, or complete other crucial daily tasks

Benefits of a Professional Evaluation

Scheduling a safety evaluation with a professional gives you the best chance of identifying hidden hazards.

You will also get personally tailored guidance and recommendations for repairs, upgrades, and other modifications. Some of the biggest benefits include:

Identification of hazards that you might otherwise overlook
Reduced risk of a fall, accident, or injury
Support for aging in place safely and comfortably
Increased independence and peace of mind
Improved home value
Greater emergency preparedness
Tailored recommendations and solutions
Referrals to trusted experts for repairs and upgrades

What to Expect When We Arrive at Your Home

One of our professionals will arrive at your home in uniform and will identify themselves with the proper ID or documents. They will explain to you how long the evaluation will take and what to expect.

They will need access to all areas of your home’s interior or exterior. If some areas are off-limits, please let us know beforehand. Make sure all pets are secured and won’t impede the evaluation.

While each evaluation is unique, the general process you can expect is:

A thorough inspection and walkthrough of all interior and exterior areas of your home
Identification of specific hazards and concerns
A consultation and discussion of our findings
A detailed report that includes our findings, our professional assessment, and our recommendations for improvement
A referral to a specialist who can perform recommended repairs or upgrades

Our Comprehensive Safety Evaluation Checklist

We do our best to go through each area of your home’s interior and exterior carefully. However, we understand that some areas may be private or off limits, or may be hard to access.

As we go through each area, we use our comprehensive home safety evaluation checklist to record the condition of the home and identify safety hazards:

Whole Home

What repairs are needed
Condition of lighting
Availability of communication devices to call emergency services
Signs of neglect, mess, clutter, or disrepair
Guns or other weapons in the home
Proper installation of working safety devices like a burglar alarm, door and window locks, smoke and fire alarm, and carbon monoxide detector
Safe, well-maintained, and functional heating and cooling system, hot water heater, and plumbing appliances

Flooring

Tripping hazards
Slippery surfaces
Damaged flooring like curled or cracked tiles or splintered or rotting floor boards
Curling or damaged carpeting or area rugs

Stairs and Steps

Presence of railing or safety bars to aid in going up and down stairs and steps
Need for a ramp or other safety devices
Condition and age of steps, stairs, and railings
Proper lighting in and around steps, stairs, and changes in flooring level

Bathrooms

Grab bars near toilet and in the tub/shower
Non-slip flooring
Proper lighting
Secured rugs
Shower stool or chair
Detachable showerhead
Proper temperature for water heater
Functioning appliances

Kitchen

Safe flooring
Proper lighting
Easy to reach daily items
Enough food in the fridge
Safety features on stove and oven
Functioning appliances

Outdoor Areas

Proper lighting and security lighting
Secured or locked gates, sheds, and outbuildings
Ramps or safety rails on steps
Properly trimmed foliage and landscaping
Pool safety features
Safe walkways and flooring

What Happens After the Evaluation

After the evaluation, we will go over our findings in detail. We will make sure you understand why certain areas are hazards or dangerous.

We will also give you professional recommendations for repairs, improvements, and upgrades. We can even refer you to a trusted local partner for home repairs and installation of home safety features.

If needed, we can go over our in-home care services as well so that you can determine if you and your elderly loved one need any further assistance to maintain a safe home.

Call Now to Schedule a Home Safety Evaluation

At Placita In Home Care, we want to help seniors in our community age safely and comfortably in their own homes. We offer free home safety evaluations in the Tucson and Phoenix metro areas.

We will use a comprehensive home safety checklist to identify hazards in your home, and then give you a detailed report of our findings and recommendations.

We can even refer you to a trusted local handyman service to perform safety upgrades and repairs that support aging in place.

In addition to safety evaluations, we also offer comprehensive, compassionate in-home care services, including in-home hospice care, joint replacement care, Alzheimer’s care, and memory care.

To schedule a home safety evaluation in the Tucson or Phoenix metro area, call us today or fill out our contact form online.