Bathing rooms: showers, tubs and transfer spaces

Chapter 6: Plumbing Elements and Facilities Bathing Rooms Common Questions Bathing Rooms Are bathing rooms that serve employees but not the public required to be accessible? Yes. Public and common use bathing rooms, including those used exclusively by employees, must comply. Private bathrooms for a single occupant accessed only through a private office are permitted limited exceptions for certain access features, such as the later installation of grab bars if walls have blocking or are reinforced. Is access required to a unisex bathing room that is provided in addition to accessible men’s and women’s bathing rooms? Yes. Unisex bathing facilities must be accessible, including where they are provided in addition to accesible men’s and women’s bathing facilities. Can access be provided to a unisex bathing room instead of to separate sex bathing rooms? If men’s and women’s bathing rooms are provided, they must be accessible even if a unisex bathing room is also provided. However, in alterations when it is technically infeasible to make existing men’s and women’s bathing facilities comply, an accessible unisex bathing room can be provided instead if it is located on the same floor and in the same area as the men’s and women’s bathing facilities (§213.2, Ex. 1). If a bathing facility has multiple shower compartments or bathtubs located in separate rooms for privacy, how does scoping apply? If multiple shower compartments or bathtubs are provided in a multi-user shower or bathing room, then at least one shower compartment or bathtub must comply (§213.3.6), including where showers or tubs are enclosed by full-height partitions for privacy. If single-user bathing rooms are provided in a cluster and accessed directly from a common use corridor or hallway, then each is required to comply as a separate bathing room. Where portable bathing units are provided, at least 5% at each cluster must comply (§213.2). Can bathing rooms be designed for assisted use instead of independent access? In licensed medical care and long-term care facilities, bathing rooms that are part of accessible patient or resident sleeping rooms must comply. The Standards cover independent accessibility and do not address design for use that is assisted by medical or resident care personnel. Design features for assisted use that conflict with requirements of the Standards can be provided in those bathing rooms that are not required to meet the Standards. Under the provision of “equivalent facilitation” (§103), the Standards permit alternatives to prescribed requirements that result in “substantially equivalent or greater accessibility and usability.” 37