The Laboratory of Architecture 60+ carried out two meetings aimed at being aware of the spatial barriers in our surroundings, thanks to the support of HEWI Heinrich Wilke GmbH, which provides the meeting with the ‘old age suit’.
The first meeting concerned expanding the awareness and experiences of young people (up to 29 years old) in testing old age using the special suit. We wanted to make young generations aware of what they can expect in the senior age.
The second meeting was attended by the carers of the Senior Residence Care Home in Katowice, who despite their high empathy and sensitivity to the needs of the elderly, realized how they can even better support the elderly in everyday life thanks to the special suit
Below here is a description of the meeting coordinator Agnieszka Szczepanik from LAB 60+: You assume a tool and it turns out that you feel like an old man who may not be able to bend down, has very limited movements of hands, legs, a head and a spine. And simple activities such as going up the stairs, using an ATM, making purchases or entering the tram grow into a challenge for 100 points. In addition, glasses imitating cataract type visual dysfunctions skilfully take away the comfort of functioning. The number of curbs, stairs, benches without a backrest, the height of which is not adapted to an older man is enormous. The city does not take into account the capabilities / needs of older people. The 27-year-old man, in the overall of old age, did not manage to pass street during the green light …