Low vision is the inability to have your eyesight fixed with surgery, glasses, or corrective lenses. If your elderly loved one has low vision, he probably needs assistance with some tasks and, likely, he cannot drive. Having low vision can seem like an insurmountable issue that makes every day difficult and while it does provide its challenges, as the caregiver, you can also help ensure your loved one has what he needs to perform his daily tasks.
You’ll want to work directly with his eye doctor, especially if you are in the process of transitioning where he is living. His new home might need to have some adjustments made for his low vision. And you might consider hiring someone like a home care provider to help with tasks that he is unable to do. A senior home care provider can provide rides to appointments, take him for walks outside and still keep him safe. The senior care provider can also help with any home chores that he is unable to do, such as reading his mail.
But while in the home, there are also things you can do to help him with his low vision, making sure he’s comfortable and safe.
Look at room lighting.
While you might enjoy a dim room, your loved one will most likely need a well-lit room. You might need to look at adding extra lamps to brighten corners, or increasing the strength of the light bulbs that are in the current fixtures, both overhead and wall fixtures. Keep stair lighting in mind as well, making sure any stairs he has to use are well-lit to prevent falls or tripping on something left on the stairs.
Increase the size of numbers.
Senior Home Care in Longmont CO
If you have a clock in the room, you might want to replace it with a clock that has larger numbers that are easily read across the room. If your loved one has a night clock in his room, make sure the numerals light up well and are large enough to read while in bed.
To make it so he can use a telephone, make sure his mobile phone uses a screen of large numbers and if you have a landline, use one that has a large number display.
You can also look at having large-number thermostats and kitchen timers if those are other numerical products he might like to use.
Use contrasting colors to indicate changes.
Having the flooring color change when he enters another room or an area with stairs can trigger a warning that the surface he’s walking on is going to change (such as going from carpet to linoleum). If you don’t have different colored floors but have linoleum everywhere, you can put down colored tape before the stairs so that he is aware he is getting near the stairs.
Write in large letters.
If you need to leave your loved one a note, write in large block-styled letters on white paper with plenty of white space between words to make it easier to read.
With a few minor adjustments, you can keep your loved one safe from any accidents that may occur due to low vision. Rely on the help of senior home care to support your elderly parent with tasks around the home and adjustments to a new normal with low vision.
If You Or An Aging Loved One is Considering Senior Home Care in Longmont, CO, Please Contact The Caring Staff At Assisting Hands Home Care Today! 720-780-7755.
