Assignment 7A-Testing the Hypothesis

Opportunity: Home entry ramps for those aging in place (elderly)
-According to research done by the AARP more and more seniors are aging in place (staying home) instead of being moved to a nursing facility. 77% of these seniors find that a entrance to their home without steps is especially important as they continue to age.
WHO: Senior Citizens (Ages 65+ who are aging in place)
WHAT: Seniors deciding to stay home as they age find a entrance to their homes without steps extremely important.
WHY: Due to age continuation mobility becomes more of a challenge for senior citizens.

Testing the who: Others such as people with disabilities which hinder their mobility could also benefit from home entry ramps. This is for anyone that has issues with entering and leaving their home due to steps. However, I find that targeting senior citizens in my market area will be most beneficial for my opportunity.
Testing the what: This opportunity if for any person that relates as a senior citizen (age 65+) who has decided they are going to age in place verses going to a nursing facility. Any senior citizen who has mobility issues, this can include poor leg strength, poor balance, joint pain, muscle pain, arthritis, any any type of injury or disease that hinders them from being able to use steps on their own.
Testing the why: Senior citizens find that as they age everyday tasks become more and more difficult. When they choose to stay at home verses using a nursing facility any type of assistance is helpful. Many seniors need to leave their homes often due to doctor appointments, church, family gatherings, and basically anything that requires their presence that can not be done from the comfort of the inside of their home. It is to much of a risk to let someone who has issues with mobility to try to use steps to enter and leave their home daily. This is setting that person up for injuries due to falling. These injuries in turn can lead to hospital stays as well the overall quality of life being shortened.

Interview #1
In this interview I spoke with a senior citizen (age 74 woman) who lives at home currently. They currently suffer from dizziness and poor balance when walking and standing. They currently use a walker to help with stability and moving from one place to another. Their home has 4 stairs in order to get to the door entrance. They find it extremely hard without the help of a family member or friend to walk up these steps without feeling like they are going to fall. Also they have to pull up their walker which makes the climb that much more difficult. By speaking with them and suggesting the ramp opportunity they felt that no matter the cost this would make life so much easier when leaving and entering their home. I felt extremely happy when they let me know that it would give them peace and make leaving the house not so scary. This conversation led me to further believe that aging senior citizens need this opportunity in their lives.

Interview #2
This interview was with a senior citizen gentleman. (Age 81) He currently lives at his home by himself but has no mobility problems at the moment. He only has 3 small steps to the entrance of his home. When speaking with him he did not see a need personally for a ramp in order to enter or leave his home but did agree that if he had any type of mobility issues that he would need something like that put in place. He knew several senior citizens that had hurt themselves due to stairs. One is now in a nursing facility because she could no longer enter her home at all and could not always rely on a family member or friend to be there with her.

Interview #3
This interview was done with a caretaker(30+ years of experience) of a senior citizen who is aging at home. The caretaker informed me that the woman she looks after who is in her mid 80s has many Dr. Appts and has to leave her home quite often. The caretaker has to basically carry the woman out of the home in order to help her get in the car to leave. The home of the senior citizen has 5 steps at the entrance and they are narrow in width. She informed me that there have been times where she has gone down on both knees due to the woman putting all of her weight on her when beginning to lose her balance on the stairs. She thought that the idea of a ramp at the entrance would not only benefit the senior citizen but those taking care of the person. She has dealt with back and shoulder pain due to having to assist the senior. Her experience as well as her input only encouraged me more that this idea is not only beneficial to senior citizens but those who are taking care of them daily.

Interview #4
This interview was done with a gentleman who has just become a senior. (Age 65) I wanted to interview him because he plans on aging in place with his wife and I wanted to get the input of someone who has a spouse and if they believed as they continue to get older if they felt this would be a need. He currently has two sets of steps to reach the entrance of his home. The first set of steps leads to the pathway towards the entrance. This set has 3 steps. The actual set of steps to the entrance has 4 wide and long steps. He informed me that currently he has no issues with either set of steps but his wife suffers from knee problems and needs his help off and on when entering or leaving the house. He felt that as they continue to age there will come a time where he will no longer have the strength to help her with the steps and they will need some type of assistance. The idea of a ramp made him think that it would be easier for him and her to handle their steps.

Interview #5
This interview was conducted with a senior citizen woman. (Age 78) She actually has a wooden ramp that she uses daily to enter and leave her home so I felt it was really important to get her insight on this opportunity. She informed me that before she had the ramp installed that she had fallen down her steps 5 times. 2 of those times resulted in her having to go to the hospital. She said that it made her get to the point where she was frightened to use the steps. She currently uses a wheelchair now to get around and besides her falls had no other choice but to have a ramp put in. Since having the ramp she is able to use her wheelchair at all times when entering and leaving and has regained her confidence. She does not plan on going to a nursing facility and felt that anyone, not just seniors suffering from mobility issues should have a ramp put in place. She said it was a little pricey but that since being installed has paid for itself in peace of mind. She loved the idea and supported it 100%.

Given your interviews, what do you know about the opportunity that you did not know before?
-The interviews gave me a great perspective on how many senior citizens feel about entering and leaving their homes. I was surprised to find that even seniors that are healthy and do not find the need for a ramp at the moment did not discredit it or feel that they would not need one in the future. Out of all of my interviews I enjoyed speaking with the caretaker the most. She was able to give me insight on what it is like to take care of a senior citizen daily and how a ramp would be beneficial. I was shocked how open senior citizens were to this idea. I felt when I first started interviewing some that they would be resistant to the idea or feel like I was putting them in a box due to their age. Not a single one tried to hide their abilities and were more than honest how scary it can be when you feel immobile. The support I received from each person I interviewed made me feel that this opportunity could really take off. I also found myself not only feeling good about the opportunity but for how much it would be helping out people. To hear how much peace of mind meant to these people really helped me realize you cannot put a price on that. I hope to interview more seniors as I move forward with this opportunity and see if I continue to receive such positive feedback.