This article was published in the May 2026 issue of Senior Times magazine.
It’s never too soon, or too late, to prepare your home for aging in place. Most seniors want to remain living at home and stay as independent as possible as they age. To ensure this happens, it makes sense to evaluate your home for safety issues before it becomes an issue, and your bathroom is a great place to start.
Seventy-eight percent of falls for older adults occur at home, and 80% of those falls happen in the bathroom. For most people, their bathroom is a relatively cramped space filled with hard surfaces which are often wet and slippery. Combine that with it being a space where you need to turn, step, stoop, and pivot more than most of the rooms in your house. It’s also the space where you are most likely to want privacy and not have someone at your side. It’s not hard to see why falls are most likely to happen in your bathroom.
A study by the National Library of Medicine found that the likelihood of sustaining a fall injury in the bathroom is almost two and a half times greater than having a fall injury in the living room. The highest injury rate was among people aged 65 and older, and injuries occurred most frequently when people were in or getting out of the tub, and when they were standing up, sitting down, or using the toilet.
Luckily, there are things you can do to make your bathroom considerably safer. A simple place you can start is to evaluate the floor surface and be sure you have good non-slip bathroom rugs/mats on your floors. That’s a start, but you will likely need some professional help to address the other hazardous conditions.
Consider installing grab-bars around your toilet to assist with standing and sitting. A good grab-bar could also help with getting in and out of the tub as well, but to really address the hazard of stepping in and out of the tub, consider a tub-to-shower conversion. This eliminates that dangerous step-up that forces you to be on one foot on a slippery surface. Installing a walk-in shower also gives you the opportunity to select a design that has a shower bench built in, if that is something you want.
What is key in considering safety modifications for your home is to think ahead. Ideally, you will make the changes needed before you need them, so that they will be there for you when you do need them. Once you have your modifications in place you may be surprised how much you start appreciating them right away – you’ll be wondering why you didn’t do this years ago.
From a simple grab-bar to a full tub-to-shower conversion, Milestone Senior Services’ Home Repair & Accessibility department is skilled in installing a wide variety of modifications that can make your home, including your bathroom, safer and more accessible. Milestone is licensed and insured and is available to help anyone in the Kalamazoo and Calhoun County area with their bathroom safety modifications and remodels. Best of all our services are considerably more affordable than other contractors and most tub-to-shower conversions can be completed within a couple of days. Call Milestone today to get started: 269-382-0515 or complete a form on our Contact page and someone will get back to you. Discover Milestone– We’re here to help.
