How to Shower a Person in a Wheelchair 🦽🚿
Showering a person becomes a challenge when mobility and accessibility are limited for showering a person in a wheelchair.
People with reduced mobility, and their carers, have to deal with the size of the bathroom and the shower tray or bathtub.
Whether due to an injury or recovery from surgery – which will temporarily limit mobility – or for people with disabilities and the elderly who require permanent support for greater safety, hygiene is crucial for their well-being.
At OrtoPrime, we work with a range of solutions for showering a person in a wheelchair, with orthopedic devices that make enjoying a safe and comfortable shower with less effort possible.
If you’re caring for someone with reduced mobility, here’s a complete guide on how to shower a person in a wheelchair, helping turn difficulties into satisfactory experiences, both by the result and by easing the process.
Preparing for a Comfortable and Safe Wheelchair Shower
At OrtoPrime, we focus on ensuring a safe, comfortable, and respectful hygiene process, both for those who need assistance and for those who are self-sufficient.
Preparing the bathroom to include a chair in the shower tray is the first step. But in addition to non-slip mats and grips for support, you need devices specifically designed to shower people in wheelchairs.
There are various types of shower chairs, with and without wheels, and even fixed or detachable chairs for conventional bathtubs.
Orthopedic shower chairs are made from highly durable and easy-to-maintain materials, and they ensure great stability for both those who need assistance and those who can manage on their own.
Before you begin, it’s important to establish respectful and open communication with the person who has mobility limitations. This is important to understand their preferences and specific needs when it comes to personal hygiene.
If the wheelchair user agrees to take a full shower in the bathroom, the choice of the shower chair should consider their ability to make small efforts when moving from one chair to another, or their need for assistance during the transition.
Shower chairs with wheels are specifically designed to make the hygiene process easier with help, so they feature a horseshoe-shaped seat that even allows for a bath with towels in the room.
Considerations to Make the Shower Chair Experience Positive
Once you’ve figured out the most comfortable way to carry out the hygiene process, it’s important to consider the temperature of the environment where the bath will take place and keep in mind that:
- The person should be completely dry after the shower, as should the clothes and the chair where they’ll be once the bath is over. Therefore, the conventional wheelchair should not remain in the bathroom while the shower is taking place, and it should be completely dry to avoid the risk of damage and skin infections.
- To wash the hair, there should be the option to recline the head during washing and ensure it is thoroughly dried before changing the temperature.
- Skin care should include using moisturizing lotions to help prevent dryness, which is always preferable within the same process as the shower.
Showering a person in a wheelchair can be quite a challenge, but it’s possible to turn it into a satisfying process by tailoring it precisely to the user’s needs.
OrtoPrime’s orthopedic experts will guide you through each part of the process to select the best shower chair for the user’s situation, the space layout, and the needs of those assisting with care.
Focusing on the needs of users and their caregivers is part of OrtoPrime’s DNA, which is why we have an extensive catalog of orthopedic solutions to provide the most secure and comfortable wheelchair shower experience possible.