Many years ago I was called in to help a family friend whose mother had suffered a hemorrhagic stroke. She and her husband suddenly found themselves faced with the challenge of building a home life around a wheelchair and other special needs.

Like most of us, this couple had not prepared their home for this event nor the aging process that almost certainly was behind it. As a result, leaving and returning to the home, bathing and using the bathroom, and accessing everyday items stored in the home at times became an ordeal.

Access to the Home

On the plus side, their home’s three-foot front door was wide enough to accommodate the chair. And because there was a relatively subtle rise, we were able to construct a 12-foot ramp that made entries and exits relatively smooth.

Widening Doors

Inside the home, however, difficulties abounded. Because the internal doors of most homes are 24-30 inches in width, wheelchair accessibility can be problematic if not impossible (in the case of this couple, their inner doors were just 24-inches).

Fortunately, widening a doorway is usually a straight-forward affair and can cost as little as $600. But in this family’s case, some electrical work would have increased the price. But still entirely doable and affordable.

Bathing

One of the biggest challenges facing the wheelchair-bound are bathrooms. While the addition of grab bars can help to solve issues surrounding toilets, showers and / or baths are far more difficult.

In this case the couple’s shower was a 36-inch square with a 4-inch tile curb and door that both impeded access. My suggestion was to demolish the shower and adjacent linen closet and put in a roll-in shower. The coupled rejected the idea. The husband – a retired Marine – instead opted to physically lift the chair over the shower curb.

Veterans of the Great Depression, the couple were extremely conservative with their money. And while I’m making no judgments about their choices, their desire to remain home ultimately was thwarted by their physical limitations.

The couple eventually relocated to a senior care facility. They also left their children a very healthy inheritance.