Accessible Bathroom Design for Seniors

Accessible bathroom design will make your aging parents safer in one of the most dangerous places in their home.

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Falls are preventable and bathrooms are one of the most dangerous places in the home for seniors. Hard surfaces, soap and water are serious risk factors.

This guide will describe features to make it easier for your parents to be safe and maintain their independence, including:

• Layout
• Toilets
• Showers/Bathtubs

Layout

• Door openings should be at least 32" across
• Use level style door handles that are easy to open and close
• Select non-skid floor surfaces
• If considering installing ceiling track lifts, ensure proper support in ceiling structure
• Ensure lighting with low glare and controls in reach
• Ensure lighting in shower/bathtub area is adequate
• Electrical outlets should not be too low
• Controls for window blinds should also be easy to reach and use
• Bathroom storage should be accessible and easy to reach
• Consider installing intercom, telephone or pull cord for emergencies (can also consider personal emergency systems such as Philips Lifeline Alert systems)

For wheelchair users:

• Allow enough room for user to turn around and use all furnishing
• Ensure sink has room for users legs to go under (at least 28" from floor)
• Allow enough room for wheelchair user to transfer onto toilet
• Allow enough room for user to easily close/open door
• Consider electric doors to assist with opening and closing of door
• Storage is within reach of user

Toilets

Toilets come in a variety of shapes and sizes.

To make it easier to get on and off the toilet, follow these simple tips:

• elevate the seat either with a raised toilet seat or an toilet riser (which goes under standard toilets and raises it up)
• install grab bars on the wall so users have something to hold on to while sitting and standing
• for temporary situations, place a commode with arm rests over the toilet. Remove the pan and install a sleeve.

Showers/Bathtubs

There are a wide variety of showers and bathtubs to ensure accessible bathroom design. Use the following tips to renovate or adapt your parents existing shower/bathtub to make it safer and easier to use.

Showers:

• Install a detachable shower head that can be mounted within reaching distance when the user is sitting on a chair in the shower
• Ensure no-skid flooring
• Ensure adequate lighting

Bathtubs:

• Install grab bars on both walls
• Consider a bathtub transfer bench or bath seat
• Consider a bathtub seat that raises and lowers users into tub (using water pressure)
• Ensure hot water regulator is installed to reduce risk of scalding
• choose tub with no-skid bottom or install no-skid bathmat Consider grab bar that mounts on side of tub
• Ensure adequate lighting
• Ensure non-skid bathmat on outside of tub

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