Most night trips in a house follow the same few steps: bed to bathroom, bed to hall, hall to kitchen if she goes for water. Lighting the whole house is expensive in effort and rarely fits what she does. Lighting the exact route is quicker, and you can check it from far away with one phone call.
Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.
Map the route as she actually walks it
Ask your mother to describe her night routine without changing it for you. Note every room she passes, every door she opens, and every step she takes. Mark the spots where the floor changes, where a rug sits, and where a doorway has no light nearby. Then ask a local helper to walk the same route at night with the lights off and report each place where they could not see the floor clearly.
Check the reach from the bed
Sit on the edge of the bed in your mother's usual position. Can she reach the switch without standing? Can she reach it while lying down? Put a light where the hand falls naturally, not where the electrician found room. If she has to get up to find the switch, the switch is in the wrong place.
Choose lights that suit the route
Low lights along the floor edge are easier to see from bed than a bright ceiling fixture that shines into the eyes. Ask whether the lights turn on by themselves when someone walks past, whether they stay on for a set time, and whether they can be switched off by hand. Test each option in the actual room at night, not in the store. Keep cords out of the path, and make sure a plugged-in light does not sit where a foot would catch it.
Light the bathroom from the seat
Sit on the toilet in the dark and see whether the switch or light control is in reach. If the bathroom light is only reachable from the doorway, move the control or add a light that comes on from the bathroom side. Check that the path from the bedroom doorway to the bathroom door is lit before the bathroom is reached.
Set a simple check
Name one person who checks the lights every time they visit or call. Ask them to confirm that each light works, that none has burned out, and that the route is clear. Put the bulb size and spare bulbs in the folder so the replacement does not wait for a visit.
Tonight
Ask your mother to walk you through her night route on the phone, and ask her which switch she reaches for first. Write down each step where she has to stop or turn on a light. If you have a flashlight in the bedroom, check that its batteries still work and that it is in the same place each night.
What to bring to the doctor
Tell the doctor about any dizziness when standing up, any change in night trips to the bathroom, any new trouble seeing in low light, and any medicine that makes her drowsy. The doctor can decide what, if anything, these changes mean for the night route. Bring the route map so the visit is grounded in what she actually does at night.