ADAPTING SENIOR LIVING COMMUNITIES TO RESIDENTS' CHANGING SENSES Using contrasting colors can help res-
idents to see better, says Keith Bradley, a designer at Levi + Wong Design Associates in Concord, Mass. For instance, it’s help- ful to put a brightly colored wall behind a white toilet to help them see where the bath- room fi xture is located, he says. The same is true of seating areas in a living room or dining room. “We want the seating areas to contrast against the fl oor surface so when someone is sitting down they can see the diff erence,” addalena says. In general, he says, you wouldn’t want to put a blue chair on a blue carpet because older residents might not be able to easily distinguish the chair from the fl oor because of changes in their vision. The use of contrasting colors can also
help residents to better see their food. For instance, if you serve mashed potatoes on a white plate, some residents might not see
the food, says Patricia Durham, East Region lead life enrichment director at Heritage Se- nior Living in West Allis, Wis. Instead of white plates, Heritage uses orange and red plates that contrast with the food, she says. Reducing glare is also important because
our eyes become more sensitive to glare as we age. Windows that let in natural light are essential in senior living communities, but it’s important not to place them at the end of a long hallway, Maddalena says, be- cause that creates a glaring light that makes it harder for residents to see and adjust their eyes in the hallway. Light can also play a role in helping to
improve a resident’s sleeping patterns. Some senior living communities are replacing overhead fl uorescent lighting with adjust- able light-emitting diodes (LED) to mimic the effects of sunlight. By using a bluer, brighter light in the morning, and a warm-
er dimmer light in the evening, lighting can help activate residents during the day and make them sleepier at night, says Andreas Wojtysiak, a biologist at OSRAM, a lighting manufacturer in Munich, Germany.
HEARING Soft fl ooring, drapes, and fi berglass ceilings can help minimize background noise and help create acoustics that mu e distracting sounds that often get picked up by hearing aids and make it more di cult for older res- idents to follow conversations, Maddalena says. Softer surfaces on the fl oor, walls, and ceiling cut down on the amount of rever- beration in open spaces like dining rooms and lounges and help mitigate the noise, Bradley says. The type of flooring used can have a
A CHECKLIST OF HOW SENSES CHANGE AS WE AGE
Hearing • Decreased ability to hear • Sensitivity to high frequency noises
• oor ability to identify sound direc- tion or source
• educed ability to fi lter back- ground noise
Smell • Our sense of smell is the least aff ected by aging.
• Smell can help improve our ap- petite and mood, and unlock our memories.
Taste • We are born with 10,000 taste buds, but that number gradually decreases after we turn 50.
• We have four taste sensations sweet, salty, sour, and bitter. Sweet and salty are often the fi rst taste receptors to be diminished.
• Medications may also alter the way avors taste.
34 SENI LIVIN EECTIVE / ISSUE 3 2017
Touch • Hands and feet can experience numbness
• Reduced ability to feel vibrations and pressure
• ur skin becomes tender be- cause it is thinner and has less elasticity.
Vision • Decreased light reaches the retina (for instance, a 60-year old receives one-third the light that a 20-year old receives)
• Decreased ability to respond to changes in illumination
• Increased sensitivity to glare
signifi cant impact on acoustics, says eith Gray, director of applied research at J+J Flooring Group in Dalton, Ga. Installing carpeting or textile composites on the fl oor can minimize noise. Two measureable prop- erties to consider are the fl ooring’s noise re- duction coe cient, which determines the amount of sound energy absorbed upon striking a particular surface, and the im- pact insulation class, which rates how well a fl oor attenuates sounds, such as footsteps, Gray says. J+J Flooring recently partnered with
The Center for Health Design to create an Impact of Aging Toolbox. This free resource, available at
healthdesign.org, of- fers case studies and interviews about ways to minimize the impact of noise in senior living communities as well as other topics, including ways to minimize slips and falls, Gray says. New technology also has made it easier
for senior living communities to better serve residents with decreased hearing. Some communities are experimenting with induc- tion loop hearing aids that essentially oper- ate as wireless loudspeakers to deliver clear, customized sound to hearing aids through an electromagnetic signal. Levi + Wong is currently working with Hearthstone Alz- heimer Care to design a new 120-residence senior living community and some of the personal rooms, as well as the community’s auditorium, will be fi tted with this technol- ogy, Bradley says.
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