(Please print this page for your personal safe keeping)

Bathroom:

  • Is the floor non slip and are the rugs or area mats non-slip as well?
  • Are handrails or grab bars installed in the bathtub, shower, by the toilet and along the walls to provide extra support? Are they at the proper standing and sitting heights? (Make sure they are properly installed so they do not fall out).
  • Are there nonskid rubber mats or nonskid strips or decals in the bottom of the bath and/or shower?
  • When required, is there a raised toilet seat or a higher toilet to provide for easier sitting and standing?
  • Are there liquid soap dispensers in the shower and by the bathtub?
  • Is there a transfer bench if needed by the bath or shower for a person in a wheelchair? Is there a chair if needed to place in the bathtub, shower or by the sink?
  • Is the bathroom conveniently located in the home? Is it on the same floor as the bedroom?
  • Is the sink 27-30″ in height, with no cabinet underneath to provide easy access for a wheelchair?
  • Are the faucets knob-type or double lever or cross knob? It is important to use single lever faucets to make gripping and turning easier? (You may elect to install a non-scald device so that your loved one cannot be burned from hot water.)
  • Is there telephone access in an emergency from the bathroom?
  • Other Reminders:
  • Be careful when using bath oils and lotions on the feet.
  • Always clean up all water on the floor promptly.
  • If there are sliding doors on the bathtub, consider replacing them with a shower curtain so that it is easier to enter and leave the tub. Likewise, if you must step into the shower stall, consider replacing it with a flat entrance.

Author

  • Ms. Mitchell began her full-time caregiving experience in the early eighties when her husband was diagnosed with cancer. Later on she became the primary caregiver for her father, along with her mother who had become critically ill from burnout prior to her dad’s passing. In recent years, she cared for several friends with AIDS while continuing to care for her mother and actively providing support, information, referrals and resources for caregivers.

    Gail's leadership on the Internet and her success with Empowering Caregivers led her to found National Organization For Empowering Caregivers (NOFEC) INC in 2001.

    Prior to founding NOFEC, she created the iVillageHealth Chat: Empowering Caregivers, which she hosted for over 5 years. Within a month of hosting she created Empowering Caregivers: www.care-givers.com in 1999 as a resource for caregivers around the globe. Over three million visitors have frequented the website.

    She has presented at national and international care-related conferences and programs and has been a keynote speaker for many programs as well.

    Ms Mitchell has assisted thousands of caregivers online and offline in ways to empower themselves in their roles in caring for loved ones.

    For a list of clients and/or her resume, please contact info@care-givers.com

    Gail's articles have been published in many venues nationally and in Canada. Presently, she is a member of American Society on Aging and National Quality Caregivers Coalition.

    Gail has discovered that there is life after caregiving: She has become a successful ceramic artist and installation artist. She created Crystal Illumination Art to bring the transformative quality of illumination, light and color to the human experience and celebrate its ability to inspire, heal and nourish our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well being.

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By Gail Mitchell