Calculating Environmental Risk
Suzanne Cronkwright and I developed this tool in order to help people who are facing very significant hoarding situations, or who others fear might be, to quantify the risk.
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It is a complex tool that contains mathematical formulas that add value where risk exists, and subtracts value when the same environment limits risks, so that you come out with a reasonably accurate percentage of what the environmental hazards and risks are that you or someone you care about are living with.
Read Below:
Calculating Environmental Risk
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The amount of accumulation, the types of items it includes, and how the items are stored determines the risk that the accumulation represents. When you rate the degree of accumulation you or a loved one are living with, think of what it represents as a risk. Think of the entire house as a box, and each room in the house as a smaller box.
Section A. Area-by-Area Risk
Instructions
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Imagine each room or area in your environment listed in column 1 and ask yourself, How full is this area three-dimensionally? Imagine that all the contents in each area is piled up at one side of the room. What percentage (%) of the room (floor to ceiling) would be filled? Imagine the items as they are typically used in the room; for example, a table should remain upright, although chairs and boxes can be piled on and under the table.
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In column 2, enter the percentage that the three-dimensional pattern of accumulation represents.
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If you answer “no” to a question in column 3, add 2% in the “Risk” column.
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Now add column 2 and column 3 together, and place the total percentage in column 4. Do this for each area in your home.
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Add up all percentages in column 4 and place the total in the “Section A total” row.
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Note: For any rooms not listed here, the test for problematic clutter is whether you can use the room for its intended purpose and not as a multipurpose space because of clutter in this or other rooms.
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Use this as an example: I estimate that my entryway is 70 percent filled three-dimensionally, so I place 70 percent in column 2. Then I look at the questions in column 3. Because I can open the door completely, I put a 0% risk in the “Risk” box. I cannot walk through the entryway without having to step on or over things (2%), and I cannot get to the front door without having to move something (2%), so my score for additional risks is 4%. I add column 2 + column 3 (70 + 2 + 2), and place the total for this area (74%) in column 4.