Preparing for the First Parkinson's Disease Fall

Parkinson's patients may have to have kitchens redone to accommodate the disease. A few ways to make this change would be to make at least one surface area of counter a lowered one to avoid the possibility of reaching or stretching that may cause a slip that ends in falling. In order to not exert too much strength when doing simple tasks, electronic utensils such as opener or food processor should be used, along with extended faucet handles, and lift tab levers.

To make the day to day tasks of preparing serving and storing foods easier, a  wall mount over the lowered counter with a peg board containing larger pots with wider bases for the patient to use, this along with a spike board to keep fruit and vegetable stationary while cutting will also serve the patient well. Using scissors to open plastic packages, as well as non-skid mats to keep utensils from moving  are good choices. Try to store leftovers in plastic containers rather than glass ones.

In general patients should try to keep the things that they need on a day to day basis as close to them as possible, if most of the day is spent in the living room or bedroom, keep a stationary cart within easy reach that has books, remotes or even your hobby essentials in them close at hand so that you don’t have to reach too far for them and risk tumbling out of bed or a chair.