A walk that is clear on one morning can be a hazard by the next. Leaves, wet leaves on steps, ice, a cracked slab, or a loose handrail can each turn the path from her door into a risk. Shoveling it once is not the job. The job needs a named owner, a routine, and a rule for when the walk is no longer safe to use.
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.
Name the owner for each season
Write down who clears the walk in each season. It might be you, a neighbor, a paid service, or a family member who lives nearby. Write a backup name for each one. A plan with one name in it breaks the first time that person is sick or away. If the answer for winter is 'we will figure it out,' the walk has no owner.
Walk the route before the season
Walk the route yourself before each season starts. Go from her front door, down the steps, along the walk, to the spot where she would wait for a ride or the mail. Note every place where water pools, where a step edge is worn, and where the light does not reach. Those are the spots the clearer needs to see first.
Keep the tools in one place near her door, not in a shed she cannot reach. Ask the clearer to finish at the edges and along the rail, not only down the center of the path.
Keep the rail and the light working
Check the handrail each season. Tighten it, replace it, or add one if the only support is a wall that turns slick in wet weather. Keep the path light working. Replace bulbs before the dark days arrive and test the switch from the door. A walk that is clear but dark is still a walk she should not use alone at night.
Decide who calls it unsafe
Decide in advance who has the authority to say the walk is closed. It might be the clearer, the family member on site, or a helper who arrives in the morning. Give that person a plain rule, such as any sheet of ice that cannot be cleared, or any step that rocks underfoot. When the walk is closed, say what she should do instead, such as use the side entrance or wait inside until help arrives.
Know the repair route
Know who repairs cracked slabs, loose rails, and failed lights before you need them. Write down the name, the phone number, and what the repair usually involves. If you do not have a repairer you trust, the local help page on this site is a place to start looking.
The walk is a small part of the house, but it is the first part she meets every time she leaves. Give it an owner and a rule, and check it on the same schedule you use for the rest of the house.