Having a bath used to be a once a week luxury for Lauraine Oleksy, who is paralysed down her right side. When the 68-year-old stroke victim wanted a soak, her daughter had to travel 20 miles to help her into the bath. Oleksy's 82-year-old husband, himself disabled, stayed close by in case of a fall.
All that changed six months ago. After 20 years of relying on other people, her life has been transformed by a grant and a simple house extension which allows her to take a shower and gives her greater freedom and mobility. Her case is a prime example of how the lives of disabled people and their carers can be improved dramatically by the use of adaptations and devices in their homes.
A report out today says home adaptations can be life-changing for disabled people who frequently describe themselves as prisoners in their own homes. Even installation of a simple handrail often has a lasting impact on a person's health and quality of life, according to the study published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. Six in 10 people said they felt safer as a result of such minor adaptations, costing no more than £500, and almost eight in 10 said their health had improved as a result.
Researchers did find instances where home alterations had failed to improve the lives of disabled people because budget constraints had forced local authorities to cut corners. But these examples were rare. In the vast majority of cases, adaptations were found not only to have improved the health and safety of disabled people, but also to have reduced the need for hospital or residential care.
For Lauraine Oleksy, who now has a ground-floor bedroom, a special shower and wheelchair ramp, the alterations to her two-storey house in Slough have made life easier not just for her, but also for her family. "I can now sit in my waterproof wheelchair in the shower and have a shower every day without bothering anyone," she says. "I used to have to drag myself up the stairs if I wanted to use the bathroom or go to the bedroom. But it was getting too much for me and my husband, who would be behind me to support me. He only has one arm and his neck has become sore from where he has been taking my weight."
Today's report is based on interviews with 260 disabled people whose homes have been adapted. Since 1995, some £220m of public money has been spent each year on alterations to people's homes, with almost all capital costs met by housing authorities. With demand increasing, however, the study argues that there is a case for extra funding to come from social services and the NHS - where pressure is reduced as a direct result of the adaptations
The report shows that among those surveyed, inability to bathe was the most common reason for requesting a major adaptation, followed by problems reaching the toilet, difficulties with stairs, feeling cold and fear of falls. On average, householders gave the modifications nine out of 10 for effectiveness.
The report says: "They promoted independence, reduced stress, and allowed people to interact with their families. Carers felt more supported; the health of disabled people and other family members was said to have improved, social isolation was overcome and children began to flourish and develop."
Frances Heywood, the report's author, argues that an increase in public funding would be - in the title of the study - Money Well Spent. However, she voices concern at the serious problems encountered with major adaptations by a small section of the sample. Evidence emerged that the £20,000 cap on the mandatory disabled facilities grant was leading to poor quality or inadequate work. Typical problems included shower areas which were too small to use comfortably, controls fitted in the wrong place or extensions which were too small or too cold. In some cases, delays had led to accidents and hospitalisation while disabled people were waiting for their homes to be adapted.
But Heywood, a research fellow at Bristol University, stresses that this must be seen in context. She concludes: "The waste caused by under-investment in this minority of cases contrasts with the benefits shown from the many adaptations we saw that had been properly funded and well-designed and executed. This reinforces the case for more investment to prevent the waste of both public money and human lives."
For Lauraine Oleksy, who has relied on her family's help for more than two decades, the adaptations are an answer to her prayers. "It was awful having to rely on people all the time - I felt so trapped," she says. "Now I have some independence and privacy, I feel much happier."
Money Well Spent is available at £12.95 plus £2.50 p&p from Marston Book Services, PO Box 269, Abingdon, OX14 4YN (01235-465500). A summary will be at: www.jrf.org.uk.
