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3 Ways To Prevent Outdoor Stairs Accidents

It goes without saying that practicing stair safety is vital. This is especially true for seniors and individuals with mobility issues. The LifeCare Mobility Solutions Blog has contributed many a post to stair safety. But with summer now in full swing, it’s only right we highlight the importance of practicing that of the outdoor variety.

Here are three ways to prevent outdoor stairs accidents:

1. Clear the stairs of all clutter and debris.

Many homeowners enjoy decorating their outdoor staircases with plants, flowers, mini statues and other trinkets to beautify their homes. We’d highly recommend against it. A stairway has one important function – the safe ascension or descension of its users. By clearing away any and all objects from your stairs, you give all users of your stairway much better shots at avoiding trips and falls.

“One reason why people fall or trip is they did not notice that toy or shoe on the stairs,” notes news, entertainment, travel, fashion website, NewzNext.com, “Having things lying around, especially on the stairs can cause someone to slip or lose their balance. Make sure your stairs are always free from clutter. Always remind people from your home not to leave things around to avoid accidents. This doesn’t only apply to the stairs, but to the entire house as well.”

2. Be sure to keep your outdoor stairway well-lit.

It’s an indoor rule as well as an outdoor rule. To ensure that any user of your stairs doesn’t trip and fall, it’s important to keep the stairway well-lit – especially at night. Naturally, the better people can see in front of themselves, the fewer the chances are that they’ll trip over an obstacle. Check your outdoor light bulbs and replace those that have gone out to be sure the area always receives plenty of light.

“Steps in poorly lit areas should have step lighting installed, to avoid people misreading where the stair edge is,” writes Tanya of Coba Flooring, “The entranceways to steps need to be well lit also. People need to be able to see that they are approaching steps to avoid any potential accidents.”

3. Don’t wax or polish your stairway.

We get it. You want your home to look beautiful. You want the staircase in front of it to look pristine. Just remember that certain cleaning products can produce slippery surfaces. So don’t wax or polish your front steps. As News Next puts it, while waxing or polishing may look beautiful, they invite accidents and injuries to happen.

Wax or polished steps, says the website, “are quite slippery and will cause people to lose their balance. It’s never recommended to wax or polish the staircase especially when there are children and elderly around. It’s always better to clean your stairway, but find other methods that won’t cause them to become slippery.”

At LifeCare Mobility Solutions, we proudly offer the ultimate solution to prevent outdoor stairs accidents. Our high-quality porch lifts safely lift individuals with rollators, wheelchairs and/or scooters up stairs so they may easily access their homes. For more information, please don’t hesitate to call us at 416-267-9800 or email us at info@lifecaremobility.ca. You may also contact us by filling out the form on our Contact page!

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