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Slips, trips, and falls are part of any child’s life. But they can cause serious injuries if your home isn’t properly safeguarded. Giving children room to explore and learn how to move around safely is vital for their development.
Visually-impaired children will be less likely to spot hazards like sharp objects or obstacles that could injure them. Safeguarding your home is one way to help a visually-impaired or blind child in your care to be able to explore their surroundings without stress.
In honor of Children's Eye Health Awareness Month, here’s a look at some tips of how to improve safety for family members with impaired vision. Many of these tips apply to people of all ages.
Plenty of light, both natural and artificial, can ramp up the contrast and make things easier to see for visually-impaired people. Focus the lighting where more hazards are located. This may include:
Make sure that the lights are directed at the task itself, not the eyes. You can also use floor lamps, table lamps, or movable clip-on lamps for flexibility and to ensure the light goes where it’s needed most.
Map out the most common routes throughout the home. Next, try to minimize the number of obstacles along these paths. Small tables, plants, and even rugs can all cause trips and falls to someone with a visual impairment.
You can also soften edges on pieces of furniture like cupboards and tables. Sharp corners can cause serious injuries when hit at speed. Many are also at head height for small children. Even for taller people, sharp table corners can injure arms, legs, and sides. Adding padding can help soften them out and reduce the danger of any injuries.
Smooth flooring can make it difficult for blind or visually-impaired children to orient themselves around the house. Putting bumpy boundaries in doorways or in front of key pieces of furniture, such as the sink or the toilet, can help children learn where things are and find their way when exploring.
Depending on the everyday activities of the individual, there are various safety tools you can buy to improve safety in the home. For older children and adults, you can buy tough gloves to wear while chopping food, in case they accidentally cut their hand.
Phone systems can be helpful for blind or visually-impaired people. This is especially true for those who spend time at home alone so that they can talk to whoever is at the door before letting them in. You can also buy machines that will identify colors and even objects by simply pointing it at things. This allows people to navigate around the home and find objects they need.
Finding ways to help blind or visually-impaired people live life on their own terms is a vital part of caregiving. We at Best Care are committed to helping everyone live independently and in comfort. If you have any questions, or want more tips on home safety for impaired vision, we're always happy to help. You can contact us today, or browse the resources on our website.
