Walk in baths

fredsnail

Does anyone have any experience of the walk in baths that used to be advertised on tv?

Mum is finding it a little difficult to get in and out of the bath and is looking at maybe getting one of these so would be grateful to hear any tips, experiences etc.

Thanks

fs

carefullycautious

I have heard that older people can become quite cold waiting for the bath to fill up and empty. So do take this into consideration.

tenmah

I put in adaptations for the local council and work closely with Occupational Therapists who are adamant that these are not safe things to use, and do not advocate them at all.

A bath lift or walk in shower would be much better. There is too much of a chance of being scalded or getting cold as has already been said in the walk in baths.

Errata

You can test the experience for yourself. Sit in an ordinary bath wet yourself all over and wait until all the water's drained out - brrrrrrrrrrr

margaretclare

I can't imagine how these things work, but DH and I decided some years ago that baths were no longer safe for us - my hips and his knees - and we had the bath ripped out and replaced with a shower cubicle. It must be at least 10 years since either of us have had a bath. The shower cubicle that we had was in its turn replaced a year ago with a more modern one with lower step-in. Sorted.

tich2

I work as an Occupational Therapy Assistant for the County Council and would not recommend walk in baths at all. I have visited hundreds of older people that think they are a great idea and I have to explain to them the problem about entering the bath and then filling it up and then emptying the bath before they get out. I then explain to them about how they are prone to leaking and normally they decide not to purchase one.
On the odd occassion they do not listen we normally hear back from them requesting for the walk in bath to be taken out and for something else to be put in as they are freezing cold by the time the water empties.

My advise to you would be to contact your local social services and ask for an OT assessment. I am not sure where you live but I am on the south coast and with normally get to see all of our clients within a month. This should save your mum some money but more importantly your mum will get the expertise that she may need. She may seem like she is coping with everything else but with my experience normally if someone is struggling with getting up from the bottom of the bath there are also other issues that can be sorted with simple pieces of equipment.

With regards to your bath there are bath lifts available that require no electrical connections, they work on rechargeable batteries and are very good, we have no problems with them at all and I have about five a week installed. There are also bath boards and if your mum is still unable to use the bath safely a level access shower may be needed. It is really worth having an OT assessment as there are certain ways to transfer on and off equipment and furniture that makes life easier.

If you need any more information give me a message.

I hope this is of some help to you!

moonrakerz

margaretclare wrote: »

I It must be at least 10 years since either of us have had a bath.

I can beat that Margaret - haven't had a bath since the seventies; mind you I was a submariner.
I have never seen the point of lying in a bath in your own dirt, to be honest.
Did the same as you in present house, nice big pumped shower - heaven !!!!

Newly_retired

DH always has a shower and I prefer a bath. Recently had our bathroom re-done and it was awful having to wash at the kitchen sink for about 3 weeks - reminded me of my childhood when the tin bath came out into the living room every Saturday night and first me, then my sister, then, after we were in bed, Mum then Dad used it.
I would echo the advice re walk-in baths. Very chilly waiting for it to empty before you can walk out. A friend has a bath with a sort of belt that winds out over the bath. She sits on that then it lowers her into the water. She is really happy with that.

tich2

The sort of belt newly retired is talking about is called a bath knight.
I would only recommend these if the person using it has good trunk strength and balance. These bathing aids have no back on them and you have to shuffle yourself across as you are lowered down and raised back up. I have also had a client that has gone to lift the belt back up and it was caught under their legs and tipped them backwards and she was very frightened.

The bath knight does have the advantage that you can lean fully back in the bath but the people I have dealt with feel a lot safer with bath lifts that have a back.

Here is a link to the bath knight and and the sort of bath lift that we would recommend.

http://www.bath-knight.co.uk/products/bath_knight/Deluxe/deluxe.html#


http://www.mountway.co.uk/content.php?nID=12&langID=1

Again I hope this helps and please message me with any further info needed.

BlondeHeadOn

Can I ask tich2 another question, as this is of interest to me as well (I'm disabled): are those suction grab handles you can buy any good?

I was thinking of getting a couple for myself for the bathroom, and also for taking on holiday with me for hotel bathrooms (which I generally find a bit of a danger area if I want a shower, slippery shower tray or bath bottom and trying to get out of it with wet feet = very scary!)

The removable suction grab handles look good, but not if they are don't suction very well...

PS Sorry to ask another question on this thread, but it may be relevant to OP as well.

EdInvestor

How much does the Bath Knight cost?