Pacific Grove, Calif. – March 9, 2023 – Meals on Wheels of the Monterey Peninsula (MOWMP) announced today it has successfully launched its new Home Heart Heroes program for recipients of its Home Delivered Meals program. Through small-scale repairs and upgrades, local homebound seniors, disabled adults, and veterans can improve the safety and mobility in their homes and reduce the risk of falls and other common injuries, allowing them to age-in-place longer.
“Continued independence for our homebound clients is at the center of the MOWMP mission, and we’re proud to help ensure that recipients of this program can successfully and comfortably age-in-place through home modifications,” says Christine Winge, MOWMP’s executive director.
There is a growing need for modifications as many older homes were not built to accommodate the aging-in-place process. Factors like outdated electrical work, uneven floors, and poor lighting can create an unsafe environment which places MOWMP clients at a greater risk of falls and injuries. Also, the ability and/or financial capacity to make home safety upgrades is often out of reach for the homebound.
These factors make falls more likely in the older population. Falls are the leading cause of injury-related death in older adults, and most falls occur at home. On average, an older adult falls every second of every day. That totals 29 million falls, with more than 7 million older adults requiring medical treatment or restricted activity. Falls at home continue to increase, despite a growing focus over the past decade on aging-in-place and home safety.
As MOWMP is acutely aware, improving health largely falls outside of healthcare facilities. The Home Heart Heroes program is modeled around an evidence-based falls prevention strategy that enables clients to live safer, and longer, in their homes. Addressing both function and cost, MOWMP assesses the home environment and identifies ways to improve safety, mobility, and independence. Through the program so far, MOWMP has provided a wide range of home repairs, such as adding grab bars and repairing trip and fall hazards, to cleaning up unsafe yard waste and constructing wheelchair ramps. Projects have successfully been completed in Seaside, Marina, Monterey, and Pacific Grove.
“Our Board, staff, and volunteers have a passion for providing home safety solutions for our clients to continue living with dignity and comfort,” continues Winge. “This type of program has never been more important, especially when seniors are spending even more time alone in their homes.”
