Unmodified bathrooms can cause huge safety issues for both the elderly and the disabled. The National Institute on Aging reported in 2017 that more than a third of seniors above the age of 65 slip and fall each year: scarier yet, 80% of those falls occur in the bathroom. At Coulee Region Mobility, we are in the business of providing bathroom safety for the handicapped, disabled, or elderly. We take pride in knowing that you or your loved ones are better positioned for safe, independent living in your homes after we have provided our services. Here are three keys we can provide to make a bathroom safer and more accessible:
Bathroom Grab Bar Installation
Bathrooms are slippery, wet, and often have features that are hard to access or get in/out of. We install grab bars near the shower, bath, and toilet to allow for safer utilization of those parts of your bathroom. Grab bars provide better balance, can help a person stand up from the toilet by involving their arms, and can literally provide something for an individual to grab on to in the case of a fall or lost balance. Our knowledge and experience ensure that your grab bar will be installed properly, in areas where they will provide the best use to you, and that your bathroom will look just as good or better than it did before we got there.
Shower Chairs
In some situations, standing up in the bath/shower is best avoided altogether. A great alternative to allow for the elderly and disabled to still safely use their shower is with a shower chair. Shower chairs can either be permanent or non-permanent, dependent on your needs.
A non-permanent shower chair can literally be rolled in and out of your shower or bathtub (assuming your tub/shower has a door). They should have locking wheels so the individual using them is safely positioned under the shower. Getting in and out of a shower chair is another instance where a well-positioned grab bar in your bathroom may come in handy. A non-permanent shower chair could make sense in a number of situations, but one example could be if a person can’t safely shower without it, but only for a limited period of time.
Permanent shower chairs are permanently installed in your shower or tub. These may be installed in a place where a disabled individual transfers on to off of a wheelchair. It might also make sense to have a shower chair installed permanently in a situation where showering without the chair is not possible or feasible for a disabled or elderly individual.
A simple addition to the chairs for shower safety would be a handheld showerhead. This reduces the need for an individual to maneuver around their shower, and also allows them to clean water in harder-to-reach areas given the problem of limited mobility.
Raised Toilet Seats
Standing up and sitting down can be a big challenge for the disabled, handicapped, or elderly. Most toilet seats are very low to the ground: a typical height you’d find in most households would be about 16 inches from the bathroom floor. For a person with limited mobility, lowering their body that low to the ground is not only difficult but can also create a safety concern.
Raising the seat of the toilet can make life a lot easier, safer, and more comfortable when using the bathroom for you or your loved one. We can work with you to install a seat that is both ADA compliant and easier to operate. Having a grab bar installed next to your toilet may also make sense.
Just call us to get started – we will provide a free consultation and work with you to provide a solution customized to your bathroom and situation. We are not a high-pressure, salesy company: our priority is just to provide a solution that makes sense to you.