5
Top notch toilet with some novel upgrades
This is a top notch Changing Places toilet - in fact, it might be the best one I've ever used, though I still found some things that could be improved.
The Changing Places toilet is well sign posted from the hospital entrance and front desk. The door was not electric but was light enough to open easily. The door to the toilet opens inwards and does not need a RADAR key to access. It has a lever lock and a grab rail on the inside, with two sets of coat hooks at standing and wheelchair user height to the left as you enter.
The toilet has vertical and fold down grabrails on both sides, however the transfer space on the left-hand side of the toilet was obstructed by a changing table and the transfer space on the right-hand side of the toilet was obstructed by a bin. The toilet had a push button flush which I found a bit hard to operate.
The Red Cord was hanging all the way to the floor and was encased in a red tube of plastic to prevent it being tied up - I have never seen this before and it works! However, it did prevent me from leaving a Red Cord Card in place and none of the Red Cords had pull-assists on them (the triangular its that make the cord easier to grasp). This might prevent someone with poor hand function from using the cords in an emergency.
The lowered sink with grabrails on both sides has a lever-style tap, hand dryer, soap dispenser, antibacterial gel dispenser and mirror. There were extra clothes hooks by the sink which I thought was a nice touch.
The Room is very large and I could turn easily with my power assist on.
The height-adjustable changing bench is not electric but foot pedal adjusted, but it was clean however there was no paper in the dispenser for the bed and the bed was obstructing the baby change table and the toilet transfer space. This Changing Places toilet also has a fold down baby change table.
The shower area was clean and large enough to accommodate the height-adjustable changing bench if moved, however the shower head was stored up high and out of reach for a wheelchair user and I would not have been able to use it without assistance.
This was also the case for the ceiling track hoist remote, which was left attached to the ceiling track hoist and up too high for me to reach from my wheelchair. I would suggest having a separate hook at wheelchair user height to hang the remote on so that independent wheelchair users can still use the hoist if they need to. I mentioned this to the front desk staff and they were receptive to the feedback.
This is a top notch Changing Places toilet - in fact, it might be the best one I've ever used, though I still found some things that could be improved.
The Changing Places toilet is well sign posted from the hospital entrance and front desk. The door was not electric but was light enough to open easily. The door to the toilet opens inwards and does not need a RADAR key to access. It has a lever lock and a grab rail on the inside, with two sets of coat hooks at standing and wheelchair user height to the left as you enter.
The toilet has vertical and fold down grabrails on both sides, however the transfer space on the left-hand side of the toilet was obstructed by a changing table and the transfer space on the right-hand side of the toilet was obstructed by a bin. The toilet had a push button flush which I found a bit hard to operate.
The Red Cord was hanging all the way to the floor and was encased in a red tube of plastic to prevent it being tied up - I have never seen this before and it works! However, it did prevent me from leaving a Red Cord Card in place and none of the Red Cords had pull-assists on them (the triangular its that make the cord easier to grasp). This might prevent someone with poor hand function from using the cords in an emergency.
The lowered sink with grabrails on both sides has a lever-style tap, hand dryer, soap dispenser, antibacterial gel dispenser and mirror. There were extra clothes hooks by the sink which I thought was a nice touch.
The Room is very large and I could turn easily with my power assist on.
The height-adjustable changing bench is not electric but foot pedal adjusted, but it was clean however there was no paper in the dispenser for the bed and the bed was obstructing the baby change table and the toilet transfer space. This Changing Places toilet also has a fold down baby change table.
The shower area was clean and large enough to accommodate the height-adjustable changing bench if moved, however the shower head was stored up high and out of reach for a wheelchair user and I would not have been able to use it without assistance.
This was also the case for the ceiling track hoist remote, which was left attached to the ceiling track hoist and up too high for me to reach from my wheelchair. I would suggest having a separate hook at wheelchair user height to hang the remote on so that independent wheelchair users can still use the hoist if they need to. I mentioned this to the front desk staff and they were receptive to the feedback.
For additional detailed accessibility information, please contact: dg.feedback@nhs.net
