Applying Ergonomics to Bathing Safety: Including Adoption of Unorthodox Practices for Slip-Resistant Underfoot Surfaces of Bathtubs Plus Showers and Provision of Effective Points of Control

Of four key factors in bathing safety, related to fall prevention and mitigation, slip resistance is relatively easily addressed. However, in the field of underfoot slip resistance, water is not typically considered as a “friend.” Surprisingly, when applied to an underfoot terry cloth towel, water dramatically improves slip resistance in otherwise slippery dedicated showers and in bathtubs used for standup showers. This is now empirically established but, as it defies convention and occurs in a relative research vacuum, there is reticence about adopting the practice of simply having a wet—or even better—damp towel underfoot while entering, using and exiting a shower facility. This paper presents what is known and what remains to be learned about the extent to which—plus why—water and terry cloth are a potent slip-resistance combination that, qualitatively, solves one-quarter of the shower safety problem with conventional bathtubs and even more with dedicated showers. Regarding potency, we have learned that thin towels are more effective than thick ones and contaminants such as shampoo appear not to affect slip resistance. Combined with code-required improvements to another factor—effective points of control through the addition of grab bars or stanchions,—a new, cost-effective practice can greatly reduce the large injury toll.