Housing design that improves the independence and safety for older adults using a walker

Accessible independent housing for people with disabilities: A scoping review of promising practices, policies and interventions

“…Moreover, people with mobility disabilities in the US reported that changes to the bathroom were the most frequent home modification followed by changes to facilitate cleaning, improve safety, home entrance and mobility within the home [ 77 ]. Likewise, for older adults using a walker in New Zealand, Kuboshima and McIntosh [ 55 ] highlighted the following design elements and considerations for accessible home modifications: layout of space to avoid needing to turn around in small enclosed spaces, removing ground-level floor differences, minimizing interior doors, avoiding sharp corners, locating door handles, sufficient space in bathrooms and garage, and L- or I-shaped kitchens. Similar renovations were noted among a sample of Koreans with physical disabilities where most home renovations involved safety handles and grab bars, removing door sills and stepped pulleys, replacing wallpaper and finishing materials.…”

“…Twenty-eight studies focused on interventions to enhance accessible housing for people with disabilities, which included home modifications [8,43,55,68,[70][71][72][73][74]77,84,85,91,99,101,[106][107][108][109], smart homes, mobile applications and other experimental devices [4,[49][50][51]65,92,94,110,111].…”

“…Home modifications. Nineteen studies focused on home modifications to enhance accessibility to enable independent living [8,43,55,68,[70][71][72][73][74]77,84,85,91,99,101,[106][107][108][109]112]. We outline below common household adaptations and factors affecting their implementation.…”

“…Twelve studies described common household modifications to enhance accessibility, which often involved entrances, bathrooms, kitchens and bedrooms [8,43,55,68,[70][71][72]77,91,101,106,107]. For example, a study focused on people with mobility disabilities in Thailand, Sukkay [106] found that bathrooms and bedrooms were the two most important rooms to adapt [106].…”

“…There remains a concerning lack of knowledge synthesis about accessible independent housing solutions for people with disabilities [ 8 ]. Focusing on independent housing is critical because most people with disabilities would prefer to live independently [ 55 ]. The findings of this review could help to inform guidelines and recommendations for the most promising practices, policies and interventions to enhance accessible independent housing options for people with disabilities.…”