Bath and Shower Seating For Disabled and Elderly: What are the options?
What is Bath and Shower Seating?
Bath and shower seats are bath aids or disability aids that have been specifically designed to assist a user who is disabled, mobility-impaired or elderly to allow them to have a bath independently and safely without the need of another person such as a family member or a caregiver to be present.
This helps them maintain their self-respect and dignity while carrying out daily hygiene tasks within the bathroom.
What Options are Available when it comes to Bath and Shower Seating?
Generally speaking, the following options are available when it comes to bath and shower seating:
- Bath or Shower Chair: Bath or shower chairs are chairs that have been designed to be used in wet areas and come with a backrest, non-slip seating surface, gripped feet (rubber pads with suction cups), soap holder and shower head holder. There are plenty of variations available including height adjustable or fixed height, with or without backrest, free-standing or suspended, padded or not-padded, with and without armrest.
It is best that the user sits on the chairs and makes sure they feel comfortable and safe on it prior to making the purchase.
Bath or Shower Stools: Similar to a shower seat but without a backrest and a bit more compact in size. Bath or shower stools are ideal when a user does not require back support and space is an issue. Variations available include fixed height v/s height-adjustable, folding v/s non-folding, smooth v/s textured seat.
Bath Boards: Suitable when the user cannot lift their leg whilst in a standing position. A bath board can be placed over a bathtub and allow the user to sit and lift their legs into the bathtub. The user can continue to sit to wash in the bathtub.
Bath Transfer Bench: The bench is placed over the tub with two legs placed inside the bath and the other two placed on the outside, allowing the user to slide across into the bath. Variations include; height-adjustability, padded or non-padded, with or without armrests.
Wall-mounted Shower Seats: When space is an issue then a wall-mounted shower is a very good option as these can be mounted on the wall using brackets and screws. When not in use, the shower seat can be easily folded away.
Other bath aids for the elderly that you might like to consider while purchasing bath and shower seating include:
Bath Steps: A disability aid or a bath aid that allows a mobility-impaired user to step in or out of the bathtub with ease as it reduced the distance that the user needs to cover in order to get in or out of the bath.
Bath Grab Rails or Grab Bars: Attached to the wall, a grab rail is an essential bath aid as it provided the user with the extra support they require to remain steady in the bath.