Survey reveals people are concerned about older relatives living alone

A study by Lloyds Pharmacy has revealed that 27 per cent of people in the South East had older relatives who had suffered a fall or similar incident while living alone. The majority of these falls were due to loose rugs, stairs or baths, which are all common hazards in the home. This has caused many people to worry about their older relatives living independently.

However, the report also found that just nine per cent of older people would be happy to receive care or go into a nursing home, according to the study carried out by the pharmacy chain. Of those asked, 61 per cent were concerned about the cost of taking care of elderly relatives who are currently living at home, and less than a third of these had space which could potentially be converted into a ‘granny annex’.

Relatives worried about older people choosing to live alone

NHS figures show that one in three people over the age of 65 are likely to experience a fall at home, with half of this number likely to fall frequently. To add to this, falls are also the most common cause of injury-related death in people over 75 years old. This highlights the importance that more needs to be done to prevent falls in the homes of older people, with many of these options being easy to implement by simply taping down loose items such as wiring and rugs.

There are a number of ways that the worry of relatives can be lessened. For example, by carrying out adaptations to the home such as stairlifts or walk-in showers or baths, the chances of those with restricted mobility experiencing an accident are significantly reduced. Personal care alarms are another option, which can alert others if an older person is in distress, and should mean that they receive help much quicker than if they were without one.

Image Credit: Daniel Milner (flickr.com)