5 Ways an NDIS Builder Can Make Your Home Safer

Everyone deserves to live in a safe home, regardless of their abilities. Unfortunately, people with disability can face additional barriers to safe independent living.

We aren’t just talking about accessibility issues and physical barriers, either – physical safety is just as critical.

Being able to navigate and perform tasks without support is one part of living independently. The other is being able to do so safely, without having to worry about accidents or injuries. As such, reducing or eliminating the most common sources of injury around the home is a key goal of many NDIS participants.

And since it involves the home, it’s one area where our NDIS builders in Victoria have extensive experience. Join us today as we explore the different ways in which home modifications empower NDIS participants to live safely and independently.

First thing’s first: what sorts of risks do people with disability face around the home?

Higher risk of injury or accident

Depending on the participant’s abilities and condition, people with disability face a much higher risk of accident. While falls and slips – particularly in bathrooms – account for a large percentage of cases, there are also other risks around the home. Depending on the participant, this can include:

• Burns and scalds while cooking or bathing
• Medical emergencies for participants with chronic health conditions
• Injuries resulting from fine motor skill impairment

These can be caused by a range of conditions. It isn’t just people who live with reduced mobility, either – visual impairments, fine motor skill conditions, medical conditions, and more can also influence the types of risks NDIS participants might face around the home.

Difficulty getting back up after an accident

People without disability often take for granted the ability to simply get up unassisted following a slip or fall. Unfortunately, people with disability won’t always be able to do that.

For example, people with conditions that affect their mobility, upper body strength, or balance can often struggle to get back up unassisted. In many cases, participants may be left trapped or stuck until help arrives – something that can be dangerous for participants who live on their own.

Medical emergencies

Many NDIS participants live with chronic health conditions and medical issues. For these participants, a medical episode or a flare-up of their condition can pose significant risk to their health, especially if they aren’t able to contact help.

In order to live on their own, NDIS participants living with medical conditions may depend on medical equipment, require ongoing appointments with specialists, and more. In addition to providing funding for these, the NDIS may also fund supports that improve participant safety and which protect them during a medical emergency. This can include monitoring systems, health alarms, and more.

Difficulty evacuating in an emergency

In an emergency situation, it’s imperative that people are able to evacuate their homes quickly and safely. This is something that NDIS participants may face challenges with, putting them at risk during emergencies.

For example:

• Physical disability can make it harder to quickly evacuate
• Visual impairment can hinder participants’ ability to safely navigate out of a home during emergencies
• Some participants may not be able to evacuate without mobility aids

In addition, during an emergency participants may also have a harder time transitioning from a sitting or lying down position to a standing position, which can slow down their evacuation.

NDIS home modifications can make life safer for people with disability by…

1) … removing potential hazards completely

One key pillar of any home safety modification is to eliminate wherever possible the most likely hazards. This is an area where NDIS home builders can play a key role. Once an Occupational Therapist has identified areas likely to pose risks, an NDIS builder can then set about modifying the home to remove them.

For example, one of the hotspots for falls is the bathroom, accounting for 80% of household falls according to some research. Shower cubicles in particular are especially risky – not only because of water and soap suds, but because traditional shower bases have a raised lip which can pose a tripping hazard.

In addition to installing slip-resistant tiling, our NDIS builders can also modify showers to remove this lip, eliminating one of the most common tripping hazards in the shower.

This is just one example of how NDIS builders can modify homes to remove specific fall hazards. We can also widen doors, or install wheelchair ramps inside homes – it all depends on which specific hazards are present in the home and the participant’s unique needs.

2) … replacing high-risk appliances with safer alternatives

While the ideal is to remove risks altogether, in many cases that simply isn’t possible. That doesn’t mean that there’s nothing we can do, however. NDIS home modifications can still help reduce the risk by modifying homes to provide participants with safer ways of performing everyday tasks.

A good example is in the kitchen – we can replace traditional stovetops with induction cooktops, which use electrical induction instead of flames to cook. In practical terms, induction cooktops only heat up when a pan or pot is placed on them (and when it’s removed, they’ll shut off). Plus, no open flames either, which automatically makes cooking safer for NDIS participants.

It isn’t only big-ticket modifications, either. Even minor modifications can dramatically reduce risk. You may not know it, but 68°C water can cause scalding in as little as one second. Home modification builders may prevent this by adding tempering valves to the home’s plumbing system to regulate water temperature, capping the maximum temperature to protect residents. It’s a minor modification, but one that can have a big impact for participant safety!

3) … making it safer to move around the house

Mobility access modifications aren’t just good for participant independence. Any modification that makes it safer to move around the home also has the benefit of making it easier to evacuate during an emergency.

And it isn’t only the usual suspects like stairs, either – one risk that often gets overlooked is transitioning between standing and seated or lying down positions.

Whether it’s standing up from a chair, transferring to a toilet, or safely getting in and out of bed, these transfers and transitions are essential for mobility and independence. They can also be potentially unsafe for participants with restricted mobility, motor skills impairments, or balance conditions.

4) … funding modifications that make it easier to recover after an accident

The danger that comes with an accident doesn’t stop with the accident itself. For people with disability, getting back up immediately after can be difficult without assistance, and can even be dangerous in its own way.

While the best way to stop this is with an in-depth fall prevention strategy, home modifications still have a role to play by making changes that can make it easier to get back up. For instance, handrail installation (which NDIS home modifications providers like us can complete in under an hour in some cases) is a simple modification that can be added to any room of the house, giving participants a strong and stable support with which to get back up following an accident unassisted.

5) … ensuring continued functioning of critical medical equipment

Depending on situation, the NDIS will fund critical devices such as medical equipment, emergency communication systems, and other critical assistive technologies. For many NDIS participants, these supports can literally be life-or-death.

And that also makes any disruptions to electricity potentially dangerous.

In addition to funding these supports, the NDIS may also provide funding for home modifications that ensure their usability during power outages. NDIS home modifications providers can modify home electrical systems with:

• Surge protection to protect sensitive equipment from unexpected power surges
• Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) systems that provide back-up power during outages
• Electrical upgrades to ensure the house has capacity for essential equipment

Home modifications are only part of the puzzle

As NDIS home modifications providers, it’s only natural that we’d spotlight the role home modifications can have in safeguarding participants. However, it’s important to remember that this is just one part of the overall equation.

In our opinion, the best way to build safe homes for participants is with a holistic approach that encompasses multiple disciplines and supports. That means combining occupational therapy and home modifications to create support plans that also include:

• Assistive tools and mobility aids – these make it easier to perform certain tasks
• Fall and accident prevention strategies – an ounce of prevention is work a pound of cure
• Manual handling training – OTs can prescribe safer techniques and practices to prevent injury

All of these different supports work together to create a safer home on every level. It’s based on close co-operation and collaboration between NDIS providers, combining disciplines to make homes safer.

Safety starts at the home – contact our NDIS home modifications providers today

Regardless of your abilities, participant safety needs to be baked into the home. As the provider responsible for implementing many of these features, it’s imperative that you engage a trustworthy and reputable NDIS builder for the job.

The Restore Home Modifications team work closely with Allied Health practitioners make homes safer. With backgrounds in Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy, combined with quality workmanship, our team are able to work collaboratively to identify risks and propose solutions.

Whether it’s building adaptive kitchens, or installing NDIS automated doors, our team works across the entire state on projects both big and small. Find out how we can achieve your goals – get in touch today by calling 1300 333 746 or requesting a quote.