The patient/caregiver was educated on general home safety measures for Alzheimer’s patients as follows:
- Avoid/limit the use of mirrors in patient’s room and restroom, as mirror images can be extremely confusing to an individual with Alzheimer’s. It is very common for an Alzheimer’s patient to interpret the image of self in the mirror as a different person and fearing a threat from this unknown person in the mirror, could attack the mirror leading to injuries & accidents.
- Alzheimer’s patients could poorly interpret sensations of heat, cold, pain, and discomfort. Avoid any unattended use of hot and cold/ice packs on Alzheimer’s patients. The machine could be left running for prolonged duration, which can damage the skin and leave a sore caregiver realizes. This can result in burn injuries from both heat and cold, which could be difficult to heal. For the same reason, caregivers must reset the temperature on the water heater to prevent any accidents from happening. Also, avoid allowing your loved one for an unattended sauna or hot tub bath. Caregivers must also check for the water temperature before the Alzheimer’s individual gets into the shower or sauna or tub bath, to make sure water is just comfortably warm and not leave the site until they are out of it.
- Display water faucets with hot and cold labels if the Alzheimer’s individual retains the ability to recognize the letters and read. Color coding the hot and cold faucets with red and blue respectively can also help, if the Alzheimer’s individual yet retains the ability to fairly distinguish, recognize the colors, and interpret the color coding. Displaying the same signs with caution for other household items, such as, oven, toaster, food & drinks, and hot iron can help prevent accidents. You can also arrange for gates and block the entry of the Alzheimer’s patient into kitchen, thus blocking their access to these risky household items.
