5 Bathroom Safety Products to Keep Your Independence as You Age in Place

Author: Guest Writer

April 26, 2024

After the stairs, the most dangerous place in the home for seniors is the bathroom. Slips can often happen in a place designed for water. If you don't protect yourself adequately, it could be dangerous and potentially lethal.

A bathroom is also a private place that most want to be alone in. Keeping your personal time private is essential to you. You should also make sure your life insurance is at a competitive rate. Independence, as you age, can include being able to make your own decisions, including knowing how to get an insurance quote without a checkup.

We will show you some of the bathrooms' dangers for seniors and how to make it a safer place so you can retain your privacy. These five types of bathroom safety equipment can make all the difference in the world for your shower experience.

1. Medical Alert Button

Even with the help of all the other items, accidents can still happen. You can fall on a slip-proof mat because you lost your balance or tripped your foot under it. You could lose your grip on the grab bar.

You may fall out of the shower seat. You might even break the adjustable shower handles and fall in the process. There are infinite ways you could still have an accident despite a variety of precautions set in place. These items make your private time safer, but not entirely without risk.

Seniors should have a medical alert button handy at all times. In the event of an emergency, those first few seconds are precious. Make sure you can take advantage of them by having your medical alert button handy.

Having a medical alert button is one of the best ways to keep your independence. It will give your kids peace of mind and, in turn, help keep your private time private, which is the goal of having every item on this list.

2. Bathtub Safety Rail

Here's an example for you — Cleotis needs help in the shower and can't avoid that at all. He has a home healthcare provider that helps him with everything during shower time. She helps him with a lot of stuff, including giving him a daily bath.

Last week Cleotis almost fell into the shower. Thankfully he's not alone during these times. His home healthcare worker caught him as he tripped on the edge of the tub. It's no stretch to say she saved his life.

However, additional help is a bathtub safety rail. After his fall, Cleotis now has a bathtub safety rail to help him get in and out of the shower. It locks to the tub's edge and has an adjustable arm to accommodate people of various body types. The cost for this item can range from $20 up to $100.

3. Non-Slip Bath Mat

Agnes is an incredibly independent person. She goes to the gym five days out of the week, she still works as a project manager, and she takes solo weekend getaway vacations year-round. She lives alone, and her kids are all adults themselves.

One day Agnes stepped out of the tub and took a nasty spill, and now she needs three reconstructive surgeries. Those gorgeous marble floors in her bathroom are a terrible slipping hazard.

This could have been easily prevented with a slip-proof bathroom mat. These mats are made because of situations like this. This one is necessary for even the most able-bodied person. Slips and falls in the shower can and do kill people.

A lot of serious — and sometimes fatal — falls could have been prevented with one of these items. Have a shower mat to protect you while in the shower and a bathroom mat to protect you out of the shower.

Shower mats usually aren't too expensive. You can find them for as low as $5, which is why you should have one. Even younger folks should invest in a shower mat because anyone could fall in the shower resulting in serious injury.

4. Shower Seat

Sharonda needs a cane or a walker to get around these days. This is not to say she's inactive. Sharonda is on the board of trustees at her church. She's the founder and managing director of a local non-profit. And she still finds time to babysit her grandkids three times a week.

Sharonda also greatly values her independence. She doesn't really like to be bothered while in the bathroom. Just ask her grandkids, who knock on the bathroom door the second she sits down on the toilet. They'll tell you.

So when it's shower time, Sharonda needs a tool of some kind to help her keep her independence. This is where the shower seat comes in. Sharonda gets in the shower and sits down, and washes her entire body from the comfort of her seat.

She feels like this item is indispensable because of her need to remain independent. She can't stand for too long, but with a shower seat, she doesn't need to.

Shower seats vary in size and features. They could cost as little as $20 or as much as $500. They're not one-size-fits-all. But the good news is that you can easily find out which shower seat is right for you.

The important thing is to make sure that it's going to stay in place in the shower. Your weight will feel like it's sufficient to hold it in place, but if your weight shifts in the wrong direction, it could be disastrous. Make sure you get on that will stay in place, whether that be with suction cups or drilling it to the shower floor. Shower seats for elderly persons can make a significant difference in safety, comfort, and quality of hygiene.

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5. Grab Bar

Jerry gets up at the crack of dawn as he usually does. He heads to the bathroom, ready to wash up and start his day. He brushes his teeth and starts the shower to let the water heat up. Jerry hates the cold, so he likes to let the water heat up before getting in the shower.

Being a solidly independent person, Jerry loves his alone time in the shower. He can handle this stuff on his own. He hasn't had a problem yet and doesn't see one coming anytime soon. So he gets in the shower and washes up as usual, and gets to scrubbing.

However, despite being independent, Jerry does have trouble standing up for an extended period. It's not that he needs to take a seat, but he could use a place to lean. But Jerry doesn't have a grab bar, so not having a place to lean, his legs give out, and he slips and falls in the shower.

Don't be like Jerry. Get a grab bar and prevent simple accidents. It is a necessary precaution for the shower. A grab bar is the best option for simple help standing in a shower for many people.

Grab bars are available in many sizes, usually ranging from 12 inches to 32 inches. You can opt for a heavy-duty stainless steel grab bar in which drilling is required to install. Or there are suction cup grab bar models that easily attach to any smooth surface.

The cost of a grab bar ranges from $15 up to more than $200. This life-saving item is a necessity as you age. You may feel like you can survive without one, but so did Jerry.

Stay Independent as Long as You Can

Staying independent as you age is essential to the majority of people, and being able to keep your bathroom routine private is valuable, too. Make your bathroom a safe place where you don't have to worry about falling and getting hurt, and you won't need another person helping you out.

For more information on safety during your private time, check out the ultimate guide to bathroom safety.

The 2020 Ultimate Guide to Bathroom Safety

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About the Author

Karen Condor Smiling with glasses, wearing a pink shirt, standing in front of a gray background with circular patterns.

Karen Condor is an insurance and wellness expert who writes and researches for the life insurance comparison site, QuickQuote.com

About Carex Health Brands

Carex is your one-stop shop for home medical equipment and for products that assist caregivers with providing the best possible support and care for their loved ones. Carex Health Brands has been the branded leader in in-home, self-care medical products for over 35 years. Our goal is to improve the lives of our customers by bring them quality products that bring dignity back to their lives. With our three nationally distributed brands, Carex Health Brands serves national, regional and independent food, drug and mass retailers along with wholesalers, distributors and medical dealers.

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Aging in Place bathroom safety