Evaluating the effect of bathroom grab bar design on safer bathrub tasks
Assistive devices such as grab bars are often recommended by health care professionals to help those with mobility limitations to safely enter and exit tubs and showers. Current clinical recommendations for bathing safety equipment often based on clinical experience and client perceptions of safety and ease of use rather than empirical evidence supporting factors of safety. Proactive installation of grab bars has also been recommended to reduce fall risk in non-clinical populations (who also experience high rates of slip and falls in bathrooms), but there is a lack of data supporting effectiveness of grab bar presence to minimize fall risk to inform policy change regarding inclusion of grab bars in building codes.
Our research aims to:
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To gather biomechanical and practice-based evidence to develop clinical recommendations for bathing aids that can prevent falls during bathtub transfers, for both healthy and mobility-limited older adults
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To inform code committees on the efficacy of bathroom grab bars to support safe bathing transfers.
Project funded by:
Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Project Grant)
Project Output:
Grab bar infographic (click to download)
