In 2019, Prothom Alo reported that more than 7% of people of our total population have a disability of some manner. According to a survey conducted under the Disability Identification Program of the Ministry of Social Welfare, the number of people with disabilities is currently 16 lakh 65 thousand 608 people. Many children are born every day with disabilities because of genetic disorders, others are just the victims of accidents or diseases. Now if the house is not properly designed, it can suddenly become challenging for people with disabilities to move around the house freely. Thankfully there are ways to make it easier for them. Here is what you need to do to make a more handicap friendly home.
Widen doors
As doors are not that wide nowadays, wheelchairs and walkers can’t easily enter the door. This is really crucial if you want to access the entire house yourself. Although changing the entire door is expensive, you can widen the frame by a few inches without changing the entire panel. That way the purpose can be fulfilled while keeping the expense manageable.
Create a ramp
Want to make a handicap friendly home? Add Ramp to your house. A ramp is a sloped or curved surface that joins at different levels. The sole purpose of a rampway is to make it easier for a person in a wheelchair to move on to different levels. But people who have difficulty walking can also take advantage of the slope. It doesn’t cost much but you must talk to your landlord if you are planning to construct one in your rented place.
Bathroom grab bar
Installing grab bars in the bathroom is always a good idea. Especially when you are living with disabled people. As wet as a bathroom can get, it can be a dangerous place if not careful. Decrease the chances of getting into an accident by installing grab bars and make a more handicap friendly home. It can also be helpful for the elderly and children too.
Raise your Toilet
Toilet risers can be a solution for people with severe back problems who have difficulty sitting or standing in an upright posture. These can easily be installed on the toilet seat without any extra effort. Toilet risers are inexpensive and you can find them at almost any large medical store.
Step-in-Shower
When it comes to taking a bath, the step-in-shower or walk-in-shower is one of the easiest solutions out there. Installing one can be expensive but there are plenty of walk-in-showers in the market that might fit your budget. One of the prime benefits of this kind of shower is that it is wheelchair accessible.
Choose the right flooring
Using rugs and carpets not only makes it difficult to move for people in wheelchairs, but sometimes it is difficult for sick people too. If not careful, it can cause multifaceted problems. To tackle this there are different types of floor to choose from. A strong wooden, vinyl, or ceramic floor are to name a few that you can use in your home.
Fix the kitchen
When you are thinking about a handicap friendly home, you can not forget about the kitchen. Efficiently divide the entire space of your kitchen so that you can save space. To make it easy, lower the height of the sink and the countertops. Move frequently used items into the bottom cabinet. Make extra cabinets, if necessary.
Lower the cupboard or closet
Keep the height of your closet and cupboards low. Install the wooden bar or metal bar just two feet above the ground for hanging clothes. This will make it easy for the people who are on wheelchairs to pick up and keep clothes from there.
Change the doorknob
Those who have problems with their hands or have difficulty using their hands may find it challenging to twist or use a doorknob. Use a lever handle instead. That will ease the process of locking and unlocking the door.
Rearrange your furniture
To ensure smooth wheelchair movement throughout the house, keep at least a 2.5 feet gap between each furniture in every area. This specific way of arranging the furniture not only benefits handicapped people, but it will also benefit all the members of the family too.
Designing a handicap friendly home will not only benefit handicapped people, it will benefit you as an owner as well. Among other effective ways to increase the value of your flat, adding these facilities can also dramatically increase the value of your property.
Check out our blog for more lifestyle-related articles like this and let us know your thoughts on the article in the comments section below.
