Senior care facilities with fall-prone populations are trying to balance safety and their residents’ desire to live as they choose, according to an article on The New York Times website.

The number of older Americans who fall and suffer serious, even fatal, injuries is rising so facilities are paying more attention to preventing falls. 

Trying to anticipate hazardous conditions, retirement facilities hire architects and interior designers, some of whom wear special glasses that show the building as an old person would see it, the article said.

Some facilities have begun to install floor lighting that automatically turns on when a resident gets out of bed. Others are installing energy-absorbing flooring in bathrooms, to reduce the impact of a fall.

Stairs can be particularly dangerous. A wide, white accent stripe can be installed at the top and bottom so residents could see the line clearly, even with blurry, yellowed vision and limited depth perception.

Read the article.