Home, the place where most of us feel most secure, may be hostile to our health in later life. Inclusive design can help future-proof homes, so that we can live independently for longer periods of time, but only if those changes are are made early-on.

Will we ever learn?

If there’s one thing we know for sure, it’s that change is inevitable. This includes shifts to our individual health status, as well as physical ability, which can pile up overtime.

As people live, they tend to accumulate a number of health-related issues, which impact vision and mobility. By the age of 50, at least half of us will be living with at least one condition, one out of five with two conditions, and around one out of ten living with three. By the age of 85 and over, at least seven in ten individuals will have at least one type of disability.

Places that used to seem friendly, like the bathroom and the kitchen, can quickly become obstacles to living a good life. Their poor design can be hazardous to our health and could force us into a new living arrangement. 

According to the CDC, at least three million people age 65 and older are treated for falls annually in the U.S., requiring 800,000 hospitalizations and resulting in 300,000 hip fractures – this is expected to double by 2050. The hospitalization cost is about $33,000 per stay per person, and the aggregate annual cost is about $55 billion. 

Anyone in the industry will tell you that a fall can also be a precursor to an unwanted move to a nursing home. But, there are solutions hiding in plain sight that can help alleviate some of the pain, suffering, and costs. And they all revolve around making spaces in the home more inclusive and friendlier.

Inclusive design is key

There is near universal agreement among individuals in every geography  in the world that they want to remain in their home. While there may be some debate as to what people classify as home (i.e. physical structure or community), there is no debating that most people want to live independently for as long as possible. 

Long-term independence can be aided when homeowners and landlords address potential physical changes in later life by incorporating them into renovations. This includes attention to details like lighting and flooring in all living areas, as well as toilet height, grab bars, and barrier free showers in the bathrooms. Inclusive design is key.

As British company, Fine&Able has illustrated, these changes need not be ugly. The Fine&Able approach eschews the medical model, embraces inclusive design, and leans into beautiful aesthetics. Their products are nothing short of stunning, and illustrate that form and function can go hand in hand; one need not follow the other. 

Governments have a role too, and they should lean into our new demographic reality as partners, because keeping people out of hospitals and nursing homes not only keeps those facilities open and available to those most in need, but it also reduces the fiscal burden on taxpayers and the stress on public coffers.

Tax incentives for property owners can and should be granted to encourage them to make these changes today, rather than waiting until tomorrow when it could be too late. Government engagement may also stimulate private sector investment and innovation too, as it has in the past.

It is quite possible that a new approach to housing in the Super Age could allow us to have it all ways, by creating spaces that extend independence, reduce financial burdens, and stimulate innovation and the economy.