The bathroom safety checklist I use in client homes
Marcus Hale, OTR/L · 8 min read
Walk it in the order they use it
The mistake most families make is auditing a bathroom by looking at it. You have to walk it in the order a person actually uses it, at the time of day they use it, in what they wear when they use it.
I start at the doorway at night, barefoot, with the lights off, and reproduce the whole routine. Half the hazards I find are invisible from the doorway in daylight.
Entry and floor
Is there a threshold or a rug edge to catch a toe? Loose bath mats without rubber backing are one of the most common causes I see.
Is the light switch reachable before the first step in? A motion sensor solves this permanently for the price of a takeaway.
Is the floor drying between uses, or is there a permanently damp patch by the shower door?
Toilet and sink
Sitting and standing at the toilet is a high-load movement repeated many times a day. If someone is pushing off their knees, they need a handle at the side wall.
Watch what the hand grabs on the way up. If it is the sink edge, the towel rail or the toilet roll holder, that is a fitting doing a job it was never rated for.
A raised seat plus a side handle transforms this station and takes minutes to fit.
Tub and shower
The step over a tub wall is the single highest-risk movement in the home. It must have a dedicated handhold, ideally one on the outside approach and one inside.
Inside the shower, check the position: the handle needs to be where the hand naturally goes when weight shifts, roughly hip-to-chest height on the wall you turn towards.
A shower stool removes standing balance from the equation entirely and is under-prescribed.
The conversation, not just the hardware
The most common reason a bathroom stays unsafe is not cost or effort — it is that the equipment looks institutional and the person refuses it.
This is why discreet, removable hardware wins in practice. A handle that looks like a fixture gets used. A chrome medical rail gets resented and worked around.
Frame it as convenience rather than decline: something for the whole household, something for travel, something that comes off when guests come.