You may not have thought of it, but the stage called senior is a delicate point in life where we need extra care to stay out of trouble. Every year, more than 15,000 seniors met untimely death from fall-related cases in the bathroom. Many have suffered injuries from head to hip to wrist, leg, and back. The financial trauma some families are experiencing is better imagined than see it happen.
How well can you avert imminent danger than taking a bold move to prevent it from source? If statistical evidence shows that many home accidents with seniors are bathroom related, then the best way to help ourselves avoid it is using the right bathing system that guarantees benefits and promises relieve from age-related health issues.
Many families and adults do, at some point in life, decide to get a walk in bathtubs for seniors, but how do you go about it if you don’t know anything about walk-in bathtubs for seniors? This article will help you overcome the challenge of knowledge about walk-in bathtubs and give you the practical approach to choosing the right walk in tubs for seniors without much ado.
What you need to know about choosing walk in bathtubs for seniors
For older persons, losing independence isn’t a thing of a joke. Most seniors today are champions of our time who have brought honor and accolades to humanity in their respective callings. The old bathtub does nothing but make them dependent on other people and make them live in perpetual fear of possible slip and fall with grievous consequences. But the walk in bathtubs for senior option is a call to independence and free living which add to their prestige and good feeling. So, while thinking of a walk in tub for senior the following features come to mind:
- Step safety. Walk in bathtubs for seniors provide safety features to prevent slip and fall for the seniors. There are specialty tubs for wheelchair access to give seniors easy access to the bath without anyone assisting. They can go in and out without cause for alarm and fear of possible fall.
- Even though they are seniors, they still prefer to have little privacy on how the wash and cool off in the bath without eyes popping around to see what they are doing. But the fear of conventional bath with regards to possible accident deny them such privacy, now they have it back as of old.
- Health needs. Old age comes with experience and also some bodily pains. Getting rid of pains and aches is one of the prime benefits of walk-in bathtub hydrotherapy feature. The impact of the therapeutic effect of walk in bathtubs for senior is great as it includes hydrotherapy massage giving them the environment to look forward to another bathing session with fun.
- A bathing opportunity anywhere you need it. One particular beauty of walk in bathtubs is the fact that you can have your bath where you need it close to you if you want. The convenience in bathing and uncluttered nature of installing a walk in tub makes a great feature that every senior love.
Knowing you can have the above features gives seniors the peace of mind to go out for the best walk in tub that meets the qualities they need. Now, let’s look at various types of walk in tubs to give you the knowledge of how each one works and adapt it to your need.
Types of walk in bathtubs for seniors
Walk-in bathtubs are perfect alternatives to the conventional bathtub. Walk in tubs are designed to bring convenience, comfort, and ease of use for the elderly who need to spend quality time in bathing. Walk in tubs come in different forms for different purposes. Below is an overview of some walk in tubs.
- Soaker tub. A soaker walk in tub provides essential water therapy function without hydrotherapy jets. They are affordable types of walk in bathtubs with leak proof doors and come with relevant safety features like grab bar, a hand-held shower and other typical feature of a bath. Soakers are in different sizes and construction depending on the need of the user.
- Hydrotherapy tub. If you need a walk in tub that is custom made to give you a real health treatment, hydrotherapy tubs are your choice. They are safe with necessary safety features, they are leak proof to prevent messing your bathroom environment that could result in slip and fall, and they come with handlebars to support you when you need to move. Hydrotherapy walk in tubs has air and water jets for effective body water massage. The jets agitate the water just like in Jacuzzi. The purpose of hydrotherapy walk in tubs is to give the user a good bath to fool good and help loosen their stiff joints and muscles for a soothing bath at all times.
- Bariatric tub. This tub is for people with extra large size. The best part of the tub is that you can customize it to get exactly what is best for you. By that, I mean you can request specific features to give you a hydrotherapy walk in tub or a soaker. Once you know every bit of extra feature you want, talk to the maker or seller for the extra features, and you can get it as desired.
- Wheelchair accessible tub. For people using wheelchairs, they need a walk in tub that they can get off the chair and go in the tub with ease. That is what the wheelchair accessible tub provides. You don’t need to worry if you need a soaker or a hydrotherapy walk in bathtub, such provision is made with wheelchair accessible tub, just ask the seller, and you will have what you want with ease.
In term of cost, it comes with more features and fixtures. However, the cost does compensate with warmer bathing, confident living, and safety. The overall feel you get using a walk in tub for senior makes the cost element a small part of the overall consideration. Talk to a professional walk in tub provider and get their opinion of your need regarding cost.