For the elderly who are still mobile the bathroom is the most interactive room and the room with the most potential for falls and/or injury.  What I mean by interactive is that there are activities that involve balance, slippery conditions, hot water, hard surfaces, and all in a confined space.  My father-in-law would spend many more hours in his bedroom but he would spend them comfortably sitting watching Walker Texas Ranger.

There are simple things that I did to make trips to the bathroom less dangerous.  I replaced the towel rack with grab bars.  I did not have the power tools or the skills necessary to do the job right so I contacted the Senior Citizens’ office in my town.  They have volunteers who have the time, tools, and experience to install them all you have to do is buy the bars.

We had the bathroom refinished when my father-in-law first came to live with us.  At that time, we had grab bars installed in the shower stall.  What I should have done was to replace the door knobs with levers.  Because I did not, sometimes my father-in-law would lock the door when he went in.  I would have to use a special key to open the door.  If you can’t put in levers at least replace the knobs with the kind that is used on closets.  Those can’t be locked.

The other thing I should have done was to request that the builder remove the curb at the base of the shower stall.  Having the curb meant that he would have to step over it while he was wet and the room was foggy.