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Why You Should Stop Using "Grab Bars !"

9/20/2011

 
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A curbless shower is the feature of this bathroom with no-step entry, a large bench and a beautiful balance bar.
It wasn’t long after my book Residential Design For Aging In Place was published that a great review appeared in a local newspaper.  It also featured my Ten Essentials Checklist for aging-in-place.  Of course, my co-author Drue Lawlor and I were thrilled with such publicity.  But it was also important the message was being delivered that a safe, secure environment does provide a way to maintain personal independence no matter age or ability.

After the review, an existing but somewhat irascible client requested an appointment.  In the meeting, he let me know that at the age of 78 and after decades of tennis and golf, he was to have hip and knee replacement surgeries.  He would then require 8 weeks in an assisted living center.

He loudly objected to the thought of being in his words,
“locked up with a bunch of old people.”  He asked if there was a way to remodel his bathroom to cut short his rehab and be home sooner than later.  He firmly instructed me to “use your ten essentials checklist and design me a bath I’ll be proud to come home to.”  
















In meetings that followed, we had conversations about bathing and grooming habits. Discussions included how he would first use a wheelchair and then a walker. The need to sit at a vanity would be important.  I provided options for a taller toilet to help reduce the strain on his knees and hips when getting off the toilet seat.   And we talked about a curb-less shower, one with a bench, a handheld shower and the requisite grab bar.

Things were moving along great until the words “grab bar” were mentioned.  He quickly stood and demanded why I would even consider such an element.  I was not surprised since he could be cantankerous.  I tried to explain that the shower was the most dangerous place in his home and should he fall, a grab bar was important for his safety.  But it was clear he would not have it.

 
“After rehab is over, I don’t want to be reminded every day that I was once a cripple.”  The conversation about grab bars was dropped.  I reminded myself to lose the battle but win the war.  What was needed was a different approach.

Shortly prior to his surgery, I offered a new solution.  No longer would he need a grab bar.  What he required was a “balance bar,” something a ballet artist would use.  He was intrigued.  I showed him the picture and described it as a seductive, sexy polished chrome support.  Of course, it was a “grab bar” but one with a high style and greater aesthetic. Need I say, he approved of it.

I think fondly of this elder client and the lessons learned about working with individuals who face temporary or permanent physical challenges.  For me, there were two lessons in this client exchange. 

•  Firstly, people do not want to be visually reminded of the challenges of the aging process. The careful specification of high style products can help reduce this perception

• But secondly and most importantly, the choice of alternate words and certain key phrases will help clients achieve acceptance of your design intent and avoid objections.  Stop using the words "grab bars" as they cause some to think about places they would rather avoid. 

So be savvy. Constantly demonstrate the value of design as a solution when creating for a lifetime of independency. After all, design isn’t just about the quality of the environment.  It’s about the quality of life. 

If you’d like a copy of my Ten Essentials For Aging In Place, CLICK HERE


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Making A Home Safe Is Important - Ten Ways To Use Technology To Make It Easy.

9/6/2011

 
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Technology can keep your home a safe place to age-in-place.
Safety is often on the minds of those who live alone but also for caregivers who take on the responsibility to monitor the safety and security of others.   The creative use and application of technologies provides the opportunity to keep homes and their occupants more secure to age in place.

It can start with simple basics such as adding an easy-to-operate wireless security system that makes it economical for people of all abilities and income level to protect their environment from unexpected entry,.. often less than $100.00.  While it can be connected to call an alarm company ( for a fee ) many systems can be programmed to call pre-assigned numbers including a caregiver or perhaps the baby boomer child of an elder parent.

In what other ways can technology provide a measure of security and peace of mind?  Here are a few creative ideas that can keep everyone just a bit safer.

• Adding a wireless door bell system that can be installed and heard in a main bedroom or master bath helps someone who might be spending time in those spaces to know when a guest is at the door. And place a doorbell switch at all entries into the home, not just the main front door.  

• Consider purchasing timers to operate lamps in an unused bedroom and perhaps in a den or other space to make it appear there are other people at home.  Have the the timers activate at various and random times in the evening, during the night and into the twilight of the morning.  Several inexpensive timers easy to set can be programmed to come on over a 24 hour period and at differing intervals to making less a target by unsavory individuals.  The Stanley 38425 TimerMax Digislim sells for about $13 for a pack of two.

• Add a wireless and waterproof telephone in the bathroom so that should an emergency occur, a call for help is easy to make.  Make sure the phone has speed dialing as a feature.  Then pre-program the phone buttons with a call to 911 plus a second ( and third ) speed call button to a family members or caregivers.  And to make it even easier, use fingernail polish as a visual cue to highlight what buttons to push.  Then decide the best location and then rehearse how to make the call for help.  


• Motion-activiated LED puck lights that operate on batteries can illuminate the path to a bath, down a hall or accentuate the steps.  A set runs less than $100. and makes a great investment.  use them also near doorways where there might be a small step or tall threshold. 

• The leading cause of accidental poisoning deaths in North America, Carbon Monoxide (CO) is odorless, tasteless and invisible – it’s a silent killer. The only safe way to know if carbon monoxide is present is to install CO detectors (alarms) on every level of a home and in sleeping areas.  They can be purchased for as little as $25.00 but can make the difference between life and death. 

• Grab bars - or what we should be calling balance bars - are an important necessity for many.  But while many boomer and their parents frequently reject their use because it brings to mind an institutional or hospital environment, great looking ones can keep the most dangerous place in the home -the bathroom- a safer place.  But grabs bars also can be great looking like those from greatgrabz.com including teak wood, acrylic and a variety of metal finishes complimentary to the plumbing fixtures like polished brass and oil-rubbed bronze.   A new one glows in the dark making it easy to see and reach out for. 
                        
• A new product from Schlage called the Link Wireless Keypad Deadbolt is a great example of the use of technology. The lock can be operated by key or by keypad with the use of a code.  Better yet, when connected to the Internet, the lock can be operated remotely using a computer or a cell phone and even send an email should it detect activity.  It sells for $300 plus installation. 
                  
• How about a surveillance camera that is connected to the Internet would allow friends or family to "check-in" on a loved one to ensure they are going about their normal daily routines. Logitech's Alert Line of Internet-connected cameras will also record images whenever there is movement in its field of vision. 

• Consider a secondary front porch light that will flash at regular intervals to alert emergency workers and direct them more quickly to a location.  With so many homes looking alike and house numbers too small or not easily seen from the street, then a flashing light will give the visual cue when time is of the essence. 
        
• And finally, it won’t be long before our cars “talk” to each other, keeping tabs on everything around us and alerting us to threats we aren’t aware of.  But what about homes?  Using a computer and a set of X-10 wireless control units can informally monitor an individual's ADLs or activities of daily living.  It would require one to go thru a simple routine such as checkin emails by 10 am everyday or turn off a light in a hall way by bedtime.  When there is an exception to that routine, a pre-recorded voice would announce to the resident of such required activity and ask for a response by going back to the computer and "checking-in."  Without "checking-in" in a pre-determined time, a call or text message is sent to someone so that a "live check" on the loved one can be made.

If you have other creative uses of technology in order to provide safe and secure independency at home, please share them here by adding a comment. 

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How About High Style Universal Design?

8/24/2011

 
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Some time ago, a senior moment here,... as I think it was about 8 years ago, I had the opportunity to attend a healthcare symposium in Orlando at their mammoth Orange Country Convention Center.  In conjunction with the event, there was a rather small product expo that showcased a number of vendors who cater to the "homecare / personal nursing" market. 

There were a few products that were interesting such as a fully-lockable, 5" deep medicine chest that was made to fit between the studs in a wall, a grab bar - what I prefer to call a balance bar - that was made from glow-in-the-dark material, and a shower seat made from recycled teak with a design that was so amazingly beautiful that it really should have been marketed to designers for use in a entry hall, foyer, at the end of the bed or in a living room.  It was just that good looking.  Great looking products that can be safe and supportive of one's independence yet provide a sense of style would be most warmly welcomed by both baby boomers and all of us designers. 

Wandering the convention center thru the miles of aisles, I came into a section where small specialized vendors had designed and executed very creative designs for wheelchairs.  One in particular was crafted from lightweight graphite with racing-style wheels, interchangeable leather seat and back cushions and a slick paint job in what I would call Ferrari red with black accents.  


It really was something to see and I remarked to the young gentleman - his name was Jim - who was the designer that it was like a fine piece of art.  Jim just grinned from ear to ear as he looked up at me from his seated position in this striking wheelchair design.  He told me that he lost use of his legs since his accident on the ski slopes and could not find a chair that didn't look like it was from some institution.  So having been educated as an engineer, Jim decided to create something special that would be comforting as well as great looking.  And he did.  I asked him what something like this Ferrari chair might sell for and he suggested that he had at least $1,800 in materials alone so I'm thinking it would be well above $3k once it hit the marketplace.

But it makes me wonder, even today,...some 8 years later, why we don't see more really cool designs for wheelchairs like Jim's. Designers like myself create high style interiors - and exteriors - that allow anyone to live with a high measure of independence in an environment that is also visually great but safe, comforting, functional and secure. Seems that there would be demand for a high style chair that is visually sensational but also functional, safe, and secure.  Just wondering.  
Universal design meets Bauhaus might be a start.  What do you think?

What's Next After Next: Green Design + Aging In Place = Sustainable Humanity

8/10/2011

 
Who hasn't heard at least something about green or sustainable design?  

One would have had to be on a planet in the third solar system past the sun not to have at least learned something about the need to conserve our planet's resources.  And the same goes for the concept of designing spaces to accommodate people as they age, what many know as universal design for aging-in-place.  So once these concepts are broadly accepted by consumers and clients, what's next?

I propose that what's next is the merging of those into one larger movement.  After all, green design focuses on environmental sustainability.  Universal design on social sustainability. It seems then only logical that thru the design of environments, the quality of the human experience would be elevated by combining independency thru barrier free spaces with those that provide high quality indoor air (as an example, thru the use of paint finishes with low VOCs.)  This would no doubt result in exceptional environments that enhance the quality of the human experience.
  
Seems simple when you think about it.  
Sustainable Design For Aging In Place. 
That's what's next after next. 

Read A Recent Review of the Book Residential Design For Aging In Place.

7/26/2011

 
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Many in the design community have provided great comments and reviews of the book Residential Design For Aging In Place written with my colleague and dear friend, Drue Lawlor, FASID.  We are pleased that architects, designers and builders have found the information to be helpful in their projects.  

But also we have received emails from consumers who see the increasing value of making the changes that embrace the concept of living with independence.  How good is that?

In a recent review published on the blog of Cosmo Architectural Design Homes, the post said, "The book is well organized so readers can pinpoint a specific topic to learn about; however, I found myself so drawn into the information that I read the book cover to cover! The uniqueness of this book is the thorough research that Lawlor and Thomas conducted.  

To read the entire post, CLICK HERE. 

To learn more about how to purchase your own autographed book, CLICK HERE.

When Does Someone Begin To Age In Place? Perhaps Its Not About The Years.

7/15/2011

 
Curbless Shower that provides accessibility
This recent project features a beautiful shower with a curbless entry.
I was talking with a design associate about how Baby Boomers and their parents resist this design concept of making their homes more accessible so that they can choose to remain in a place of their choosing for as long as it is possible.  Clients of mine have put up road blocks when I start talking about "their age" and how homes can be more accommodating if certain features were changed.  One client told me who is approaching the big 6-0 that old for her was her parents who are well in their eighties. It was interesting to note that she doesn't consider that she will be getting old until she hits 70.  That's her benchmark.

But what I started to think about during my call with my colleague is that this concept of making changes to ones home or place of work to accommodate the physical changes that naturally occur in our body should be less about age and more about adapting to ability.  Wow... something that I knew as a specialist but it was like a knock on the side of the head. This aging in place thing certainly applies to baby boomers who are thinking about their future but the truth is:  Its Much 
More About Independence and doing all the things to one's domicile that permit one to consider that living in a place of one's choosing should always be at the top of the list. 

Here is a quote that I read somewhere and wanted to share that tells it like it is: We are all aging all the time, and accessibility needs aren’t dictated by one’s years – it’s dictated by one’s abilities.

So I'm looking for ways to describe the concepts and ideas of creating places that are safe spaces without resorting to terms like aging in place nor even universal design.  Would it be :  LifeTime Design?  Freedom Homes?  Choice Design Selection? Accessible Interiors?  Anyway, what are your thoughts?  There should be a name that makes this idea of accessible much more sexy.  

Your Comments?

What Do The Famous Have To Say About Getting Older?

7/10/2011

 
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We often look at celebrities and the famous to gain perspective on things such as life, money, sex, politics and family.   So I decided to see what the famous people of the past ( and one from the present ) had to say about getting older.
  
• Would they have some knowledge or wise sage that they could share that would help us baby boomers better appreciate what is yet to come as we get along in years?  
• Do they have a unique perspective that only comes after living six, seven or eight decades?  
• What might we learn from them that could be applied now to make life just a little less daunting?

I discovered several interesting quotes from a few well known people that makes me think that we may lose our memory as we age, but it appears that we don't lose our sense of humor.

"Sometimes, when I look at my children, I say to myself, 'Lillian, you should have remained a virgin."
- Lillian Carter (mother of Jimmy Carter)
"We could certainly slow the aging process down if it had to work its way through Congress." 
- Will Rogers
"Don't worry about avoiding temptation... as you grow older, it will surely avoid you."
- Winston Churchill
"Maybe it's true that life begins at 50... but everything else starts to wear out, fall out, or spread out." 
- Phyllis Diller
"Old age is fifteen years older than I am now."
- Oliver Wendell Holmes
"Age in something that simple does not matter unless you are cheese."
- Billie Burke
"The age of a woman doesn't mean a thing.  The best tunes are played on the oldest fiddles."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Like everyone else who makes the mistake of getting older, I beging each day with coffee and obituaries."
- Bill Cosby
"An archaeologist is the best husband a woman can have. The older she gets the more interested he is in her."- Agatha Christie

And by far, this favorite one,...
"I had a rose named after me and I was very flattered. But I was not pleased to read the description in the catalog: 'Not good in a bed, but fine up against a wall.'" 
- Eleanor Roosevelt

Getting Older Can Be A Bitch

7/9/2011

 
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Car Manufacturers Are Watching Out For Baby Boomers.

7/7/2011

 
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Larger fonts on dashboards will make it easier to read.
It won't be long before we will be seeing subtle but important changes to the things we use everyday as baby boomers impact the country - and the world - as they age.  One maker of audio equipment is exploring an concept that would add a face plate to the front side of their boxes that would make it easier to read the dials and screens.  And a vacuum manufacturer is considering changing the style of their handle to accommodate people with arthritis.  Now, at least one car maker is also getting into the act.

According to research by Ford, even small changes can make the words in its interior graphics easier for everyone to read, regardless of their age. The effect is even more visible on aging Baby Boomers who might appreciate actually seeing the dashboard without squinting. And beginning next year, Ford has decided to begin the production of Ford’s Edge and Explorer SUV models with 40% larger fonts. And then later on...on other Ford models too, with higher contrast and larger fonts on the interior display screens control and A/C controls.  

What an amazing concept !!

“Today, aging consumers are of great interest to companies including Ford. For the first time, people age 65 and over will outnumber children under the age of 5. It’s a transformation that’s changing the world, along with all kinds of products in it.” (according to Ford’s statements).

One thing is for sure.  Larger words will mean that many of us will now actually know just how fast we're driving and won't be able to use that excuse if we are pulled over by the authorities.   "But Officer... I couldn't actually read the dials on the dashboard so I had no idea I was doing 60 in a 35 mile hour zone." 

So what will be next?  What changes in product design should manufacturers take into consideration?
Your Thoughts?

Designing For A Life Of Independence.

7/6/2011

 
designs for independency
Just a few days ago we celebrated the 4th of July, a day set aside to celebrate our American independence.  And since independency was a major theme of my book, I thought I would share the first chapter of Residential Design For Aging In Place with readers as it speaks to how important independency is to all Americans but especially to those who are challenged by the design of their homes. 

If you would like to read the first Chapter entitled Designs For Independency, GO HERE. 

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    Michael A. Thomas, FASID, interior designer in Phoenix, AZ
    Michael A. Thomas, FASID

    Welcome To This Boomer's Design Blog!

    Michael A. Thomas, FASID is an author, writer and interior designer who as a caregiver developed a passion for creating homes without barriers, maximizing the independence of his clients and having a little fun along the way.  
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    Feel free to contribute your thoughts in this blog.
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    Co-Author: Residential Design For Aging In Place.  To learn more, CLICK HERE. 


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