HOME SAFE HOME PROGRAM IS ROLLING OUT

Shown are the volunteers for EPSI's Home Safe Program getting ready to hit the road to do some home safety visits and distribute our beautiful home safety kits.   They are Resident Care Worker students from the Marguerite Connolly program.

HOME SAFE HOME

Keeping Seniors Safe in Their Homes

An East Prince Seniors Initiative program

Funding provided by Insurance Bureau of Canada, and

supported by Home Instead Senior Care,

Callbeck’s Home Hardware, and City of Summerside Fire Services

 

Home is where the heart is, but for Canadian seniors, it’s the place where most injuries are likely to happen.    The good news is that there are steps you can take to minimize your risk and keep you safe and comfortable at home.   (Seniors’ Guide to Living Safely—Insurance Bureau of Canada).

 

The Home Safe Home program was begun to help seniors take an objective look at their surroundings and point out some areas that could be risk factors.  At least one-third of all falls in seniors involve hazards in the home.

 

Home assessments will carried out by volunteers who will be using detailed checklists to point out potential safety hazards in the home.  The volunteers will be resident care worker students from the Marguerite Connolly Resident Care Worker program, who will have training in using the checklist.   The assessments are free, and the visit should take approximately 30 minutes.

 

The volunteers will assess seniors’ dwellings using the checklist, and leave behind suggestions (such as, taking up cotton mats, considering installing a deadbolt lock for the door, putting slip guards in tub, etc.)    Assessments will not include checks of electrical, heating or plumbing systems.    The checklist is focused on home safety, fall prevention, and accessibility issues…..some of the most prevalent causes of accidents.    These visits are not intended to replace occupational therapist roles.

 

A safety kit will be given as a thank you to homeowners who participate, compliments of The Insurance Bureau of Canada.   This kit will include slip strips for the tub, an electrical outlet bar, plug-in emergency light, microwave pot holders, printed information about programs and safety topics, and other items.    The City of Summerside Fire Department has provided a number of fire alarms for residents who do not currently have working alarms. 

 

The intent of the Home Safe Home program is to help seniors stay in their homes safely.  We encourage family referrals for loved ones.  Seniors who own their homes or are renting are eligible.  

 

The program will be offered to the first 100 seniors who live in Summerside who register, and the target date for these assessments is the end of March and first part of April, 2014.  To register, please call East Prince Seniors Initiative at 888-2177.