A couple has a townhome in Charlotte and a home on the west coast. The husband is spending more time caring for his wife's health.
As the wife's caregiving needs were evolving, the husband needed to focus his time on her care as well as add some solutions to the townhome in Charlotte that would support her and him as a caregiver. We brought in resources to install grab bars and comfort-height toilets, apply a non-slip solution on the shower floors, source non-slip bath mats to keep with the home's aesthetic and add motion-sensor lighting to light pathways throughout the home. We were also engaged in bringing in and managing resources for seasonal and annual maintenance of the home, including HVAC, dryer vent, and house cleaning.
A couple downsized from their house to a townhome. The wife is the primary caregiver, and the husband has Parkinson's.
A move is a significant milestone in anyone's life. But when it is the home you built and raised your family in for forty years, it can be utterly overwhelming. We supported this family by mobilizing and running point on all of the resources needed to move out of the house within a tight 45-day deadline and settle into their new townhouse. This included bringing in and working collaboratively with the couple to manage a wide range of resources and tasks from packers, sorters, movers, consignment, painters, electricians, plumbers, audio-visual team to draperies, shutters, stonework, wrought iron handrails, elevator servicing, pressure washing, door repair, carpet installation, appliances, hardware selection and installation of accessibility solutions throughout the home. We continue to work with this client to provide support with ongoing home maintenance and property management.
A recently widowed husband looks to assistive technology to fill a gap.
A gentleman in his mid-70s, recently widowed and with a heart procedure on the horizon, needs to be supported and have peace of mind now that he is living alone for the first time in over fifty years and is waiting for the surgery he requires. He wanted to implement a solution that would alert emergency medical responders, his loved ones, and a few neighbors that if he experienced heart issues, that would lead to him falling, experiencing a heart attack, or otherwise. He also wanted to make some of his daily activities less burdensome, such as brewing a pot of coffee and turning certain lights in the house on and off without being required to flip a switch. The client had recently purchased an Apple Watch and was a longtime user of Amazon Alexa. This allowed us to leverage his existing technology to develop a plan to address his needs. We configured his Apple Watch for fall detection and enabled it to alert emergency services, his adult children, and a neighbor, providing them with his location. We leveraged his Amazon Alexa by installing several smart plugs to certain lights around the house and in the coffee machine, allowing him to brew coffee and control the lights with voice commands. We also installed dusk-to-dawn lightbulbs on his front porch so emergency responders could quickly identify the house's location when it was dark. The client has all the peace of mind he needs as he awaits his heart procedure and feels supported, as do his children and neighbors.
A family has urgent fall risk concerns with a loved one who has dementia, and they don’t know what their long-term needs will be.
A family contacted me because their father had dementia, and they were concerned about the fall risks in the home. The father and mother lived in the same house they'd lived in for 40-plus years. They wanted to continue living in it for as long as possible but weren’t sure yet if they wanted to move to Assisted Living in the next couple of years or whether they would like to make home modifications that would allow them to move the master suite to the main floor. Still, the family was very concerned that the home presented some fall risks that needed to be addressed immediately, given the father's cognitive decline, loss of balance, and intent to navigate the house the way he always had. They knew someone would get hurt and injured if they didn't change their home. First, they contracted me to conduct a Home Inspection. The father's journey with dementia required me to delicately balance including the husband in our meetings so that he felt like he was in charge and being collaborated with while also separately meeting with the wife and the adult children to make decisions that were in the best interest of everyone. I prepared a report that categorized my recommendations into things that should be addressed now, soon, and someday, prioritizing short-term and long-term needs. Then they engaged me to help manage the urgent modifications with my preferred resources and vendors. Logistically I worked with them to schedule any work being done at home while the father wasn't at the house so that it wouldn't cause him any stress or anxiety, which provided the opportunity to be respectful to the father while also walking a fine line between knowing that he wasn't capable of making decisions. The goal of the home was to make it safe, functional, and comfortable, while the plan with the father was to keep him calm, safe, and loved. After the project, we implemented several modifications and solutions that would support the husband and wife to continue living in the home for now and plan for the next steps as his needs evolved, all while managing the father's relationship with dignity, respect, and care.
A couple has decided to move to an assisted living home in two years but needs a few updates to live safely for their remaining time in the home.
The husband and wife couple had already decided which assisted living home they would move to, and when they contacted me, they had targeted a move date for some time, approximately two years later. Both could advocate for themselves but were aware they would benefit from some solutions to support them for their remaining time in the house. First, they contracted me to conduct a Home Inspection. I identified the minimum number of things that needed to happen to keep them safe and comfortable for their remaining time in the home. Then they engaged me to help them manage a handful of home modifications with my preferred resources and vendors, and they could handle the other home modifications on their own with their preferred resources. One of the things I managed on their behalf was installing two handrails along the stairs to their primary entrance. The client has expressed that the handrails have been 'life-changing' as they provided them with the support they need to safely navigate the stairs and give them peace of mind that they don't have to worry about falling and getting injured.
A husband who is the primary caregiver for his wife who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s
The husband and wife live in a single-family home they built and have lived in for over thirty years, which sits on a large piece of property. The husband plans to transition his wife to an assisted living facility in the next 4-5 years. We worked with him to implement home modifications and assistive technology, including a watch that would automatically call emergency services and his emergency contacts if he should fall. This was important to him since his wife could not care for him or herself in such an event.
Our parents needed an outdoor living area during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
When the Pandemic arrived in 2020, it instantly changed our parents’ access to caregiving resources and social stimulation and caused my dad to experience caregiver fatigue. To remedy these issues, we developed a concept for an outdoor living area to repurpose their carport into a covered, open-air living space and a section of their backyard as a seating area for people to gather. These spaces would enable them to host friends for socialization and caregivers to be with my mom, providing support and relief for my dad, rain or shine. Because of my mom’s cognitive decline, we needed to include her in our planning meetings so that she could feel like she was in charge and being collaborated with, but in reality, decisions were being made without her. We knew her sense of style well enough to represent it in the project and incorporated her favorite colors and plants. She was also at a point with her symptoms of confusion, fear, and anxiety that having her present at the house while the project was being worked on wasn’t an option. We were able to leverage a network of friends and family to pick her up for lunch or a joy ride around town to solve this problem. The final project for the outdoor living spaces included a functional carport area with a fully stocked refrigerator and freezer, a potting bench that we repurposed into an outdoor kitchenette, and a rug with two patio bistro tables. We installed ceiling fans and floor fans to keep everyone comfortable during warmer weather and mini tabletop heaters to keep people warm during the cooler months. Next to the refrigerator was a welcome hutch with paper towels, disposable face masks, disinfectant wipes, hand sanitizer, and a chalkboard with 'house rules.' The backyard sitting space included a chiminea set into a newly landscaped seating area with socially distanced seating options. This project was a game changer for our parents, family, and friends. The outdoor living areas were used to safely gather, socialize, and enjoy each other's company. For our parents, it provided stimulation and respite.
