ABSTRACT

This chapter offers a life care planning process for home assessments, including the recommended qualifications of the professional on whom the life care planner may rely for appropriate home assessment recommendations. Qualified life care planners are trained to evaluate a client's needs for specialized housing and home modifications in addition to future medical care and other factors. Several types of ramping can be developed and will be dependent on the style of home, location of ramp, and homeowners' association requirements, if applicable. When using a porch lift, it is important to always have a permanent type of ramp that can be used as an emergency exit in the event the porch lift malfunctions or the power supply is cut. Exits that require access through a kitchen, carport, or garage, or past a gas furnace that is sometimes located in a hall will not qualify as safety exits, as these areas are the most likely to be involved in a fire.