How expensive is it to build a visitable home?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17411/jacces.v13i2.323Abstract
Loneliness and social isolation of older people or those with mobility impairments may result from the physical environment not being in correspondence to their degree of mobility. Winter conditions combined with the presence of steps at the entrance to homes are among the obstacles that prevent them from participating in social or community activities necessary for their well-being. The concept of visitability is proposed in order to allow seniors or individuals with mobility impairments to visit their loved ones. The three criteria for achieving the basic visitability of a residence are: 1) an entrance without a step at the front, back or side of the home (located on a path accessible from the street); 2) wide doors on the main floor (minimum 813 mm (32") opening); and 3) an adapted bathroom on the main floor. The objective of this study is to validate whether visitability can be an economically viable solution, through a comparative cost analysis, to enable older people or people with mobility impairments to visit their loved ones. The results of this case study demonstrate that the marginal costs of applying visitability criteria to new construction can be zero or negligible. These results indicate that the approach to visitability, both basic visitability and so-called improved visitability, should be taken into account more systematically by builders and developers in order to promote the social participation of older people or those with motor disabilities.References
Canadian Centre on Disability Studies. (2013). Visitable Housing: Knowledge, Practices, and Policies. http://visitablehousingcanada.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Policy-Review-Visitability.pdf
Concrete Change. (2012). Quick Guide : Low Costs of Visitability. Visitability: Basic Access to Homes. https://visitability.org/quick-guide-to-low-costs-of-visitability-vs-costs-of-no-change/
Conwell, Y. (1997). Management of suicidal behavior in the elderly. [5]Psychiatric Clinics of North Amerca, 20, 667-683. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0193-953X(05)70336-1Edelbrock, D., Buys, L.R., Waite, L.M., Grayson, D.A., Broe, G.A. and Creasey, H. (2001), Characteristics of social support in a community‐living sample of older people: The Sydney Older Persons Study. Australasian Journal on Ageing, 20: 173-178. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-6612.2001.tb00382.x
Environnement et Changement climatique Canada. (2017, August 8). Les dix événements météorologiques les plus marquants de 2008. https://www.ec.gc.ca/meteo-weather/default.asp?lang=Fr&n=B2EA41B2-1
Erin Miller, Elizabeth Wightman, Karla Rumbolt, Sara McConnell, Katherine [10]Berg, Moira Devereaux, Fiona Campbel (2009). Management of Fall-Related Injuries in the Elderly: A Retrospective Chart Review of Patients Presenting to the Emergency Department of a Community-Based Teaching Hospital. Physiotherapy Canada, 26-37. https://doi.org/10.3138/physio.61.1.26
Gardner, I., Brooke, E., Ozanne, E. and Kendig, H. (1999). Improving Social Networks,a Research Report: Improving Health and Social Isolation in the Australian Veteran Community. Lincoln Gerontology Centre, La Trobe University, Melbourne.
Gouvernement du Québec. (2012). Vieillir et vivre ensemble: Chez soi, dans sa communauté au Québec. Ministère de la Famille et des Aînés. https://publications.msss.gouv.qc.ca/msss/fichiers/ainee/F-5234-MSSS.pdf
Gutzmann, H. (2000). Diagnosis and therapy of depression in advanced age. Therapeutische Umschau, 57(2), 95–99. https://doi.org/10.1024/0040-5930.57.2.95
Holmes, W.R., Joseph, J. (2011). Social participation and healthy ageing: a neglected, significant protective factor for chronic non communicable conditions. Globalization and health, 7, 43. https://doi.org/10.1186/1744-8603-7-43
Johnson L.M., Chen Q. (2009). Adaptable and Visitable Housing: Affordable and Sustainable Changes. Construction Research Congress, 588-597. https://doi.org/10.1061/41020(339)60
Maisel, J. L. (2006). Toward inclusive housing and neighborhood design: A look at visitability. Community Development, 37(3), 26-34. https://doi.org/10.1080/15575330.2006.10383105
Mazumdar, S., & Geis, G. (2001). Case study method for research on disability. In S.N. Barnartt, and Altman, B.M. (Ed.), Exploring Theories and Expanding Methodologies: Where we are and where we need to go (Research in Social Science and Disability, vol. 2, p. 255-275), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Bingley. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1479-3547(01)80029-4
Morales, E., Gamache, S. & Edwards, G. (2014). Winter: Public Enemy #1 for Accessibility: Exploring New Solutions. Journal of Accessibility and Design for All, 4(1), 30-52. https://doi.org/10.17411/jacces.v4i1.57.
Morales, E. & Rousseau, J. (2010). Which areas of the home pose most difficulties for adults with motor disabilities? Physical & Occupational Therapy in Geriatrics, 28(2), 103–116. https://doi.org/10.3109/02703181003728903.
National Council on Independent Living. (2020). About Concrete Change. Visitability: Basic Access to Homes. https://visitability.org/about-concrete-change/
Organisation mondiale de la Santé. (2002). Vieillir en restant actif : cadre d'orientation. Genève: Organisation mondiale de la Santé. https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/67758.
Progressive Accessibility Re-form Associates, Lanny L.M. Silver Architect, and Hilderman Thomas Frank Cram. (2006). VisitAble housing: Community building through VisitAble and adaptable housing. https://www.gov.mb.ca/housing/progs/pdf/visitable-housing-visitable-housing-community-building.pdf
Progressive Accessibility Re-form Associates, Lanny L.M. Silver Architect, and Hilderman Thomas Frank Cram. (2007). VisitAble housing: Cost estimate summary. http://visitablehousingcanada.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/PARA-VisitAble-Housing-Cost-Estimate-Summary-2007.pdf
Régie du bâtiment du Québec. (1995). Code de construction du Québec, Chapitre 1: Bâtiment et code national du bâtiment du Canada 1995 (modifié). https://www.rbq.gouv.qc.ca/fileadmin/medias/pdf/Publications/francais/FormationCodeConstChapBatiment.pdf
Silveira, E. & Allebeck, P. (2001). Migration, ageing and mental health: An ethnographic study on perceptions of life satisfaction, anxiety and depression in older Somali men in east London. International Journal of Social Welfare, 10, 309–320. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2397.00188
Société canadienne d’hypothèques et de logement. (2007). Le point en recherche : Comprendre la situation de la visitabilité au Canada. (Publication no 08-011).
Smith, S. K., Rayer, S., Smith E. (2008). Aging and Disability: Implications for the Housing Industry and Housing Policy in the United States. Journal of the American Planning Association, 74(3), 289-306. https://doi.org/10.1080/01944360802197132
Smith, S. K., Rayer, S., Smith E., Wang, Z. & Zeng, Y. (2012). Population Aging, Disability, and Housing Accessibility: Implications for Sub-national Areas in the United States. Housing Studies, 27(2), 252–266. https://doi.org/ 10.1080/02673037.2012.649468
Stark, S. (2001). Creating disability in the home: The role of environmental barriers in the United States. Disability & Society, 16(1), 37-49. https://doi.org/10.1080/713662037.
Truesdale, S., Steinfeld, E., & Smith, E. (2002). Visit‐ability: An Approach to universal design in housing. Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Universal Design, School Of Architecture and Planning, University At Buffalo.
Ward, M. Franz, J. & Adkins, B. (2014). Livable Housing Design: The Voluntary Provision of Inclusive Housing in Australia. Journal of Social Inclusion, 5(1), 43-60. https://doi.org/10.36251/josi.68
Yin, R. K. (2013). Case study research: Design and methods. Sage publications. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjpe.30.1.108
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Ernesto Morales, François Routhier, Elizabeth Turcotte, Christelle Montreuil, Asmae Sqalli
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share or adapt the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. Use of the work for commercial purposes are not allowed.
- Authors are able to publish the journal's published version of the work in other media (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), as far as they inform the Journal of Accessibility and Design for All of that fact. When publishing their work in other sources, authors must mention the name of the Journal of Accessibility and Design for All, its ISSN, the number and issue in which the article was published and a link to the main page of the Journal of Accessibility and Design for All. Optionally, they can also include a link to the article published in the Journal of Accessibility and Design for All.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website), as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.
