If a loved one has dementia, you will want to make sure that they are as safe as they can be in the home. Thankfully, there are some steps which an electrician can take which can help to keep your relative safe. Below is a guide to 3 modifications you should consider if a loved one has dementia.

Installing additional electrical sockets

People with dementia can sometimes find it difficult to navigate around their home. Visual disturbances can also affect their sense of depth and pattern recognition. This means that it is very easy for a person with dementia to trip and fall over electrical extension wires. To prevent the need for loose wires on the floor, you should ask a contractor to install additional electrical sockets, which will cut down on the number of extension leads which are laying around the home.

Installing additional lighting

One way of reducing the amount of anxiety a person with dementia may feel is to ensure that the rooms in which they live are well lit. An electrical contractor can add additional lighting to a room to ensure that objects and people can be clearly seen despite any visual disturbances caused by dementia. You may also wish to ask the electrical contractor to install strips of different-coloured LED lights in corridors and doorways. By assigning a different colour to different areas of the home, you can help a person with dementia to navigate their way around their home.

Installing electrical cut-off devices

One of the things that places people with dementia at risk is an occasion when they forget to switch off an electrical appliance such as an electric iron or heater. If these items are left switched on and unattended, they could quite easily trigger a fire. Thankfully, your friendly neighbourhood electrical contractor can visit your relative's home to install power cut-off devices. These devices are triggered when the electrical item is switched on and in use. After a fixed amount of time, the cut-off device will trigger a switch which then cuts electrical power. This means that even if someone with dementia accidentally leaves the iron on, you can be certain it will soon be turned off automatically.

If you are interested in finding out more about how an electrical contractor can help you to modify the home of a relative who has dementia, you should give one a call today.