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To contact us:
John A. Pernorio, President
RI ARA
94 Cleveland Street
No. Providence
Rhode Island 02904-3525
Phone: 401-480-8381
Fax: 401-722-2622
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Dr. Joseph Boffa
Director
RI ARA Medical Care Programs /
Alliance for Retired Americans
Community Advocacy Network
Executive Board Member
Fire Safety for Elders with Special Health Needs
Decreased mobility, sight, hearing or cognitive capabilities may limit a person's ability to take the quick action necessary to escape during a fire emergency. People over the age of 65 are twice as likely to suffer injuries or lose their lives in fires compared to the population-at-large, according to the U.S. Fire Administration, part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
If your elderly loved one has Alzheimer's or dementia, problems with mobility, or is vision or hearing impaired, there are certain precautions that need to be taken in the event of a house fire. These precautions go above and beyond the traditional fire safety guidelines for all families. (LINK)
Here are some fire safety tips for elderly people with special needs, provided by the U.S. Fire Administration and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA):
Mobility impairments
If your elderly loved one uses a cane, walker or wheelchair – or is in a cast due to an injury – traditional escape routes may no longer be viable. One-quarter of victims with physical disabilities were unable to act to save themselves during a fire emergency, according to the U.S Fire Administration.
Check all exits to make sure wheelchairs or walkers can get through the doorways. Make any necessary accommodations (such as installation of exit ramps) to facilitate an emergency escape.
- Install flooring material that accommodates artificial limbs or canes.
- Keep a phone by the bed for emergency calls in case the person becomes trapped and is unable to escape. Put emergency numbers in the speed dial directory of the phone.
- People confined to a wheelchair may want to have a small "personal use" fire extinguisher mounted in an accessible place on the wheelchair, and become familiar with its use.
- When escape is not an option due to impaired mobility, fire protection devices such as sprinkler systems, fire-safe compartment walls, and flame-resistant blankets can be used. The key is to have the room fireproofed before an emergency happens.
Blind/visually impaired
- The most important thing a blind or visually impaired person can do to improve his or her chances of surviving a fire is to be prepared ahead of time.
- Plan and practice two escape routes from each room in the home. By practicing an escape plan, a blind or visually impaired person can escape to safety, without losing time searching and feeling for an exit. Committing these actions to memory will serve as an instinctual map to safety.
- A blind or visually impaired person will not see the fire, but must rely on other senses – the smell of smoke or the sense of heat emanating from the fire to know where the danger is. Test doors before opening them. Use the back of the hand, reach up high and touch the door, the doorknob, and the space between the door and the frame. If anything feels hot, keep the door shut and use the second exit route.
A person may be forced to crawl along the floor to avoid smoke. It can be very disorienting to crawl when you are used to walking – especially for those who count steps to locate doors and hallways. Place tactile markers along the baseboard of exit routes to help a visually impaired person feel their way to safety.
Hearing impaired
Conventional smoke alarms that sound during a fire aren't effective for someone who is hard of hearing.
¨ Many assistive devices are specially designed to alert hearing impaired people of an emergency. These include smoke alarms and appliances that use strobe lights and vibration equipment. Vibrating beds and pillows that are wired to a smoke alarm have been developed to awaken people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
¨ Smoke alarms with a strobe light outside the house can catch the attention of neighbors or others who might pass by.
Alzheimer's or dementia
If your relative has Alzheimer's or dementia, know that even cognitively impaired people oftentimes have an innate understanding that something is wrong during an emergency, and may be more clear-headed than you would imagine.
- Remain calm during an emergency. Explain what is happening clearly and simply, but don't expect them to remember specific details. Validate their concerns, but provide clear direction without condescending or losing patience.
- Provide a picture book of emergency procedures. A cognitively impaired person may be able to follow visual instructions more easily. Contact your local fire department or the National Fire Protection agency.
- Practice escape routes. Cognition tends to improve and worsen at various times for people with Alzheimer's or dementia. If escape is practiced continually, instinct may take over and guide the elder to safety.
- The person should sleep in a room that has easy access to the outdoors in case the home needs to be evacuated. A ground floor bedroom is best.
- If your parent is in the early stages of dementia and lives alone, alert the fire department ahead of time to their special needs.
- Regardless of their disability, all elderly people should live in a home with working smoke alarms and sprinkler systems. A working smoke alarm can reduce the risk of dying in a fire by as much as 60 percent, FEMA says.
- Practicing escape plans is also vital for all elders. Knowing their escape plan is one of the most important steps elders can take to save their life in a fire. Plan the escape around your loved one's capabilities. Know at least two exits from every room. Make sure your loved one can unlock all doors and windows.
Practicing escape plans is also vital for all elders.
10 Tips for Preventing Dementia-Related Fall
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls are the leading cause of injury-related deaths for older adults. Those who live with dementia are especially at risk. Impaired judgment, decline in sensory perception over time and an inability tell others about their needs can contribute to an increased fall risk for people living with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia-related disorders.
The following 10-point guide provides easy-to-follow tips that will help family members reduce falls risks for their loved ones with dementia:
1. Arrange for adequate lighting.
Dementia can damage the visual system and cause illusions and misperceptions. Make sure the home has enough lighting in each room to reduce visual difficulties. People with dementia might misinterpret what they see, so reducing dark areas and shadows is vital.
2. Provide visual cues.
People with dementia can have difficulty separating similar colors (such as the same carpet on the stairs and on the floor) and setting objects and their background apart. It is helpful to define the top and bottom of a staircase through the use of contrasting colors.
3. Clear walking paths inside the home.
Those living with dementia can have a hard time recognizing the danger of a loose rug, unsteady footstool or electrical cords stretched across the floor. Removing tripping hazards and keeping pathways clear can help prevent falls.
4. Decrease clutter outside.
Areas outside of the home should be clear of objects (leaves, rocks, etc.) and there should not be dips in walkways or otherwise uneven ground in a senior’s path.
5. Information and reminders in a common place.
Create a single place for any notes or reminders that can easily be accessed and read by a person with dementia. This can be a cork bulletin board or a dry erase board. Using a single location simplifies the process and provides for an organized system, preventing the need for a senior to walk around looking for information.
6. Keep important things by the bed.
A major issue for people living with dementia is confusion at night. Restless nights can leave them tired and unsteady. To help prevent wandering at night, keep important items on a bedside table, including water, a light source, eyeglasses, tissues and the telephone.
7. Consider unmet needs.
A person living with dementia may start to wander as their condition progresses. This may lead them into unsafe areas. Wandering often signifies an unmet need a senior is trying to satisfy. For example, they may be looking for a telephone because they usually called their wife at 5 p.m. Instead of trying to physically stop the wandering, try distracting or redirecting their activity to avoid raising a person’s anxiety or frustration level.
8. Lower noise levels.
As a person living with dementia may have more sensitivity to noise, you should try and decrease the level of white noise and loud sounds around them. If the noise level becomes too much, it can cause anxiety and nervousness – which can make a person with dementia unsteady on their feet.
9. Keep help at hand.
For an older person who is at risk of falling, being able to quickly and easily call for help is vital. Consider various forms of remote care technology, such as a fall alert bracelet or auto detector, which can be used in case of an emergency.
10. Supply safe footwear.
What a person wears on their feet can represent a major fall risk. If a shoe can easily slip off, it can cause them to trip. However, a person living with dementia may struggle with complicated articles of clothing that involve buttons or laces. Shoes with Velcro fastenings are a good solution, making footwear easy to take on and off, but also safely securing it to their feet.
Handling Dementia Mood Swing
People with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia can often experience mood swings. These episodes can be trying on their caregivers as they try to help.
“The best thing that a caregiver can do to mitigate mood and behavior changes is to know and understand the individual person — including history, likes and dislikes, favorite foods, music and activities, what soothes them, what upsets them, what time of day they are at their best, and so on,” said Ruth Drew, Director of Family and Information Services for the Alzheimer’s Association. “When you know the person you can organize the day so that you anticipate and avert many problems before they occur. You recognize the signs of distress early and have several methods of dealing with them.”
Some of these methods include filling the day with pleasant experiences in which the person is comfortable and comforted by sights, sounds and tastes they enjoy. This needs to be combined with plenty of “down time” to avoid feelings of boredom and loneliness. Proper management of diet, activity and medications can minimize pain that might also cause mood swings.
“When someone with Alzheimer’s seems upset or withdrawn, first assess for pain or discomfort,” Drewsaid. “Pain in people with Alzheimer’s is under-recognized and under-treated, because they may not tell us in the way we expect. When pain is the problem, rely on your medical team to diagnose and treat the cause. Sometimes the things we interpret as mood swings or challenging behavior can simply be a person’s reaction to uncomfortable clothing, being too hot, too cold, hungry, thirsty, bored or fatigued. Often, if we try to look at the world through the other person’s eyes, we can figure out what’s going on and help to solve it."
Drew reminds caregivers that “all behavior is communication."
Know that sometimes there is only so much a caregiver can do and support for the caregiver and medical intervention for the person with dementia are necessary. The Alzheimer’s Association offers education programs and support groups in local areas, as well as online social media and eLearning sites at www.alz.org, and a 24/7 Helpline at 800-272-3900.
Dear Friends:
We write to update you on the status of our Windfall Elimination Provision ( WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO)Task Force. Since the Task Force's inception months ago, we have made much progress as we added groups and individuals beyond the original Alliance for Retired Americans leaders. Representatives from AFT, NEA, AFSCME, Social Security Fairness, Polish Strategic Alliance Initiative, California Retired Teachers Association, Federation of Federal and Government Employees, representatives from Firefighters, Police and a large Facebook group have joined forces to raise awareness of this gross unfairness and to support federal legislation to fully repeal WEP-GPO.
House bills 82 and HR 5723 both call for repeal. HR 82 calls for full repeal and has bi-partisan support. HR 5723 is a more comprehensive Social Security Fairness bill that also includes the full repeal and is paid for. To date, this bill does not have bi-partisan support, but because it is a Democrat-sponsored bill, may have a better chance of passing in the House. Two companion bills in the Senate need more Senate sponsors. SB 1302 is a companion bill to HR 82 and SB 3071 is a companion to HR 5723.
On May 18th, about 70 Task Force members, representing many states assembled in D.C. for a Lobby Day and Rally. We visited many congressional offices, and at the Rally, several of our members recounted their WEP-GPO stories along with encouraging remarks from Senator Whitehouse (R.I.), and congressmen Cicilline (RI), Larson, (CT), and Moulton (MA)
We have a petition calling for WEP-GPO repeal. This petition was introduced a few years ago by John Pernorio (RI ARA), President), and now has 90,995 signatures. We will present this petition to Congress when a bill is introduced on the House floor. For now, we ask anyone who has not yet signed, to go to MoveOn.org and search for Elimination of the Unfair WEP-GPO Provisions of the Social Security Act.
We ask that you reach out to friends and activists to contact their respective congresspeople and U.S. Senators urging them to support these legislations if they haven't already done so, and thanking them if they already have.
Our Task Force has come far in raising awareness of the injustice of this Social Security provisions and supporting positive legislation to completely repeal both the WEP and the GPO Thank you for your attention. If we all do a little, we can accomplish a lot.
Suzie Dixon, Bonnie Cediel, Bette Marafino (on behalf of the Task Force)
RI ARA 2023 E-Newsletters
RI ARA 2024 E-Newsletters