Seniors, Shower Doors, and Safety

What Does a Shower Have to Do With Senior Safety?

How will the shower impact the senior's ability to safely bathe? According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 30 million seniors ages 65 and over fall annually. This can result in broken bones (such as hip fractures), head injuries, or even fatalities.

Seniors who suffer from some medical conditions, have injuries, have mobility issues, or use some types of medications are at risk for a serious fall. The bathroom environment can increase the fall risk for several reasons, including:

• Moisture. Wet floors and walls can make it difficult for a senior with balance, sensory, or mobility issues to stand steadily. The added moisture of the bathroom environment increases the likelihood of a fall and potentially serious injury.
• Obstacles. The shower and tub may seem like easy-to-navigate spaces. But for a senior who has balance or mobility issues, the partial wall of a bathtub or a shower curtain can pose slip and fall hazards. 
• Small space. A senior who doesn't have room to turn or navigate the area properly could slip and fall. While some bathrooms offer plenty of room to move, most are relatively short on space.
• Sliding glass doors. Sliding glass doors are tricky to move and may pose a challenge for a mobility-impaired senior to navigate.

Even though a damp, cramped bathroom can pose a significant slip and fall risk for an aging adult, it doesn't have to. You can modify the bathroom and upgrade the overall safety of the space.

How Can You Upgrade a Shower for Senior Safety?

Along with grab bars, non-skid mats or rugs, and added space, a frameless glass shower door can make bathing easier. This bathroom upgrade adds functionality and a sense of style to the space.

How can a new frameless shower upgrade increase safety for a senior? While a glass door won't stop moisture-related slip and falls or injuries from loose or slippery bathroom rugs, this shower option can:

• Eliminate the need to step over an obstacle. A frameless-door setup eliminates the need to step in and out of a traditional tub. This reduces the risks for seniors who have balance and mobility issues or injuries.
• Remove the risks of a shower curtain. A damp shower curtain can easily tangle around the senior. This can increase the likelihood of a fall. A glass shower enclosure removes the risk and provides the aging adult with a tangle-free entry/exit area.
• Provide easy access. An older sliding glass shower door is difficult to use for a senior with coordination or mobility issues. In comparison, a swing open frameless door is easy to operate. This provides the senior with a greater sense of freedom and increased safety.
• Offer a customizable option. Does the senior need a larger entryway? Unlike standard shower doors, a customizable, frameless glass enclosure is easy to widen or narrow for individual needs.

A frameless enclosure can also provide a safety upgrade if the senior has an older glass shower door. While it's unlikely the door would spontaneously shatter, modern frameless models are made from a safer tempered glass. Unlike older glass doors, this option is made to shatter into smaller pieces - which are less likely to cause deep wounds.

Is the senior in your life ready to schedule a glass shower upgrade? Contact our team at Palmetto Glass & Mirror for more information.