Most accidents happen in the home; falls, hip fractures, broke bones and burns. In older adults burns that cover more than a small percentage of the body are very serious and sometimes fatal. I recently had a dear client who attempted to take a bath before the caregiver arrived and scalded herself. She was very badly burned and fortunately for her the burns were not life threatening. Had this happened to another older adult, the results might have been fatal. I now talk to families about looking at the not so obvious things around the house. Do stairs have double railings to avoid falls, should the stove be removed and only a microwave left, should a child gate be placed near steps so that the individual cannot go down or up stairs, what other possible hazards exist? It’s always the ones we don’t think of that cause the most harm.
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