Designing for Seniors

This topic has been on my mind quite a bit lately, because my Grandmother is 89 and I am realizing the full impact of what it means to be her age. She can't drive anymore, and is suffering from various ailments that prevent her from being able to get around as much as she used to.

It amazes me that we are not doing more to create communities for older people that function on many different levels. let's take Sun City as an example. If you have ever been into one of the Sun City complexes, they are really enormous and nicely laid-out, with lots of walking paths, golf courses and paths, and all sorts of entertainment options for the residents. Often they are also sited near a Wal-Mart and a health center, as well, so that residents have easy access to amenities.

However, the biggest problem with this sort of community is, the day the resident can no longer drive, they have to leave. A Wal-Mart in "close proximity" is one thing if you can drive there. It's another thing if you have to walk, and you have a replacement hip or are partially blind. It's so sad to think that older people must relocate and make new friends, and become re-accustomed to a whole new life once they lose the ability to drive. They might still be perfectly capable of cooking, cleaning their house, and doing other daily tasks of survival. They might have friends and a social life in their community. But in this modern age, if they cannot drive, their life is basically over.

We need to create communities that allow older residents to switch to a transportation-assistance program when they stop driving, and then gradually as they lose the ability to do daily tasks, they can be transitioned into an assisted-living arrangement where they live! Is this such a hard concept for developers to grasp? Many of these people either have no family, or else their families are far away and don't see them often. Their friends and neighbors may be all that they have. And, the nice thing about this social network is that many of the older residents are still capable of driving, working part-time, etc so they are a great resource for house-bound residents. Not to mention, that the more independent residents know the time will come when they need help too, so they are probably glad to help those who are already further down the path in terms of functionality.  Paying it forward, so to speak.

Depression among seniors is high. Families are more disjointed and remote than ever. It's time we design communities to help alleviate this problem and create places where people can age comfortably and without fear of losing their home when they get to a certain point.