The Bedroom

• 

  Provide an adjustable over-the-bed table like the ones used to serve meals in hospital rooms.

  Make the bedroom bright and cheerful.

• Make sure adequate heat (65°F at night) and fresh air are available.
• Make the bed 22″ high and stabilize it against a wall. Or use a bed with wheels that can be locked. This will allow the person who uses it to get up and down safely.
• Use blocks to raise a bed’s height, but be sure to stabilize them carefully.
• Install a monitor to listen to activity in the room of the person in your care. (Some are inexpensive and portable.)
• Provide a firm mattress.
• Provide TV and radio.
• Consider a fish aquarium for distraction and relaxation.
• Use disposable pads to protect furniture.
• Install room-darkening blinds or shades.
• Place closet rods 48″ from the floor.
• Provide a chair for dressing.
• Keep a flashlight at the bedside table.
• Provide a bedside commode with a 4″ foam pad on the seat for comfort.
• Hang a bulletin board with pictures of family and friends where it can be easily seen.
• Provide a sturdy chair or table next to the bed for help getting in and out of bed.

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The Home Environment

The ideal home for a stroke victim is having a one level (ground floor) house. Having more than one floor is all right only if there is an elevator or another approved lift device, or if the person in your care does not need to go to the second floor. The ideal care home is laid out in such a way that the caregiver and the stroke victim can see each other from other rooms.

Safety

For the safest home, follow as many of these steps as possible:

To accommodate a wheelchair, arrange furniture 5 1/2 feet apart.

Furniture

• Remove all furniture that is not needed.
• Place the remaining furniture so that there is enough space for a walker or wheelchair. This will avoid the need for a person who is elderly or disabled to move around coffee tables and other barriers. Move any low tables that are in the way.
• Once the person in your care has gotten used to where the furniture is, do not change it.
• Make sure furniture will not move if leaned on.
• Ensure that the armrests of a favorite chair are long enough to help the stroke patient get up and down.
• Modify or cushion sharp corners on furniture, cabinets, and vanities.
• Make chair seats 20″ high. (Wood blocks or a wooden platform can be placed under large, heavy furniture to raise it to this level.)
• Have a carpenter put railings in places where a person might need extra support. (Using a carpenter can ensure that railings will bear a person’s full weight and will not give way.)

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Adapting for Safety, Accessibility, and Comfort

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