Toilet Safety Rails Offer Safety and Comfort Benefits

Filed under Handicap Bathroom

There are many potential benefits to installing toilet safety rails into your home bathroom. They include an increased level of safety, ease of getting up and down from the toilet, and comfort while actually using the toilet.

As an elderly person or a person living with physical disabilities, a fall in a bathroom can be extremely dangerous. It can often result in the inability to get up, forcing the injured person to lie on the floor for hours or even days. Sometimes, this can even result in death due to either the gravity of the injury or the deprivation of food and water.

Why Should I Install Toilet Safety Rails

Adding safety rails to your toilet can easily prevent this type of fall by providing an anchor for climbing up and down. The sturdy, padded arms mean that you don’t have to balance entirely on your feet while sitting down. No one wants to fall and hurt themselves, possibly even breaking or fracturing a hip or elbow. But it’s much worse when it is inside your own home, as the possibility of getting immediate medical help is greatly reduced if you cannot recover on your own.

Another benefit to these railings is that they make it easier to get up and down, without having to strain your joints. For many elderly people, the motion of sitting up and down without an anchor for their hands can be extremely painful. Safety rails eliminate this by providing a firm foothold to the ground, increasing coordination and balance and reducing strain on the joints, particularly the hips. There are adjustable toilet safety rails that can be raised and lowered according to your own preferences. If you add safety rails on top of a raised toilet seat, you will have the best toilet seat that offers both safety and comfort.

Comfort is another reason to add toilet safety rails to your home bathroom. Many models come with foam armrests, allowing you to rest your arms in a natural ergonomic position, instead of slouching over. This not only keeps your back feeling great as it promotes good posture, but it can promote circulation in the arms by keeping them more straight.

Toilet Safety Rails Costs

Insurance is not likely to cover such an item because it is considered a personal convenience item. However, at just $30 to $40, toilet safety rails are a wise investment for anyone who struggles with joint pain or could be seriously injured by a fall, preventing thousands in possible medical bills.

ADA Accessible Showers Provide Safety, Comfort and Independence

Filed under Handicap Bathroom

Sometimes the physically able-bodied forget what life must be like for a disabled individual. Even a simple task like taking a shower can be so frustrating. They would have trouble reaching anything in a normal shower.

During showering time, they get tired and there is no place to sit. Their options are to sit on the wet cold floor, shower bench or plastic shower chair. The bench and chair are both good options but this means standing up to reach for the shower heads and shower handles to adjust the water. They will most likely need assistance, which limits their independence and privacy. By installing an accessible shower, these seemingly simple tasks will be so much easier for your loved one.

Universally Designed Showers for Everyone

Did you know that accessible showers are universally designed? This means anyone can benefit from their functions and not feel hindered. However, it is important to know the needs of individual and what kind of accessible shower will work for them.

Consider the particular needs of the disabled individual that the shower is designed for.

• Are they completely wheelchair dependent, thus requiring a roll-in shower?
• Or, are they able to transfer from a wheelchair to a seat, therefore allowing them to use a transfer shower?
• Or are they sick of the shower curbs that create a dangerous situation when trying to climb over it?

These are universally designed showers that are not just for the physically handicapped but for anyone with a desire to increase the safety, comfort and the look of their shower. A low shower threshold can be a welcome addition to any shower stall.

If you are adapting an existing bathroom, you will need to be conscious of the space that you have available as this will also affect your choice of shower. It may not be practical to install a shower enclosure that a wheelchair can fit into, but takes up so much space that the wheelchair cannot maneuver in the bathroom. So you plan ahead for the wheelchair spacing in the bathroom.

ADA Accessible Showers Guidelines

While handicap accessible showers within a private home are not required to meet ADA standards, it is good to be aware of these since they are designed to offer a high level of maneuverability and safety to the user. Grab bars should be 1-1/4” to 1-1/2” in diameter and be mounted 33” to 36” above the floor. Seats should be mounted 17” to 19” above the floor and should be the full depth of the enclosure. Both seats and shower grab bars should be able to take the force of 250 lbs. Controls should be easily accessible from a sitting position and should to be easy to use with one hand. The shower head should be able to double as a fixed and hand-held unit. It’s also important that the flooring be slip-resistant. You can check ADA federal requirements website for more specific measurements. Many pre-manufactured accessible showers are already designed to meet these requirements.

We have heard the case for handicapped accessible showers for the disabled but did you know they can actually make your bathroom appear larger? The main selling point was wheelchair accessibility but they can also be perfect for bathroom remodeling. Imagine how much bathroom space will open up without a shower curb obstructing the view.

So whether you have moved into a new home, someone in the family has been injured, or maybe you yourself need a little more assistance than you did in the past, the shower can still be a comforting and private place for each member of the family to relax and enjoy.

Tags: Accessible Equipment, Shower handicapped, Universal Design Showers