Activities of daily life still cause problems for many older and physically impaired people.

Abstract

Activities of Daily Life (ADL) are those activities that are fundamental to maintaining independence. Without being able to do them, people can become dependent on others or simply not live their lives in the way that they would wish to. A survey of 50 older and disabled people found that surprising numbers were unable to fulfil the level of independence in ADL that they wished to. For all the advances in the recent age in technology and equipment design, these basic activities are still proving too difficult for a sizeable percentage of the older/disabled population. As the population ages, pressure will come to bear on designers to consider the needs of older/disabled people more fully, to meet the needs of the shifting market trends.