Occupational Therapy Practice Guidelines for Home Modifications

Home modifications are generally provided to improve occupant functional performance, reduce hazards to prevent falls or other injuries, and reduce the demands on caregivers. The need for home modifications arises when the features of the environment pose challenges or demands that are incompatible with an occupant's ability to be safe. Such incompatibility may be the result of impairment, such as that associated with a health condition, or changes in abilities due to aging. This Practice Guideline, updated to reflect concepts from the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework, briefly discusses the domain and process of occupational therapy for home modification, including a summary of evidence from the literature regarding best practices. Intervention strategies include medical equipment, universally designed products, architectural modifications, major home renovations, or learning a strategy to use the environment differently. Appendixes contain evidence tables as well as diagnostic and billing codes.