A Wheelchair Accessible Bathroom Offers Independence, Mobility, And Self-Confidence

How would you feel if you wanted to utilize a restroom but were unable to get through the door? This is the trouble wheelchair patients find themselves in more often than not. Rent an apartment. The washroom is going to be too small and the door too narrow for access. Get a house. Even then, the washroom will most likely need to be made over and adapted for wheelchair use. Washrooms simply aren’t made with the disabled in mind. Stop and think about what you might need in a wheelchair accessible bathroom if you or perhaps a family member should become wheelchair bound, the things which would give you self-sufficiency, mobility, plus the liberty to care for your individual needs.

To begin with, you’re going to need space to maneuver. Although wheelchairs are being made with smaller turning radius’ all the time, they still need space to maneuver. Take some measurements. You will need a minimum of 30” x 48” of area for one wheelchair. Some of this room can be underneath the sink as long as there is lots of clearance for the chair’s foot rest. For comfortable turns, there must be a space with a minimum of a 60” radius.  Many bathrooms don’t have this type of room, so before you are able to redesign the space making it wheelchair accessible, you are going to have to find more room somewhere. You may be able to get rid of a cabinet in the bathroom or a nearby room, or perhaps you might just take part of another room and add it to the bath.

Fixtures in a handicapped bathroom need to be planned well so that you can meet the requirements of space and function. Toilet seats must be 17” to 19” from the floor and have grab bars on both sides whenever possible. Though sinks ought to be located lower than in a normal bathroom, there still must be at the least 29” of clearance between the lip of the sink and the floor so that the disabled person can get nearby the sink in a wheelchair. Wheelchair accessible showers should be big enough for the individual to enter effortlessly and turn around as needed. Hardware must be at a level that permits the person to utilize it without help.

It’s easy to feel low self-esteem whenever a person is struggling to care for their own needs. By changing a bathroom for use by a wheelchair patient, you will let them have the self-confidence and independence they need in permitting them to take care of themselves.