Catastrophic disability bath

Abstract

The catastrophic disability bath includes a bath stall formed by a front wall, a rear wall, first and second side walls and a floor. The first side wall has a wall portion and a door. The wall portion and the door are coplanar. The door has a body, a head that extends cross-wise from a first end of the body and a foot that extends from a second end of the body. The foot provides a connection to facilitate rotating the door vertically upwardly and downwardly between an open and closed position, respectively. An actuating device causes the door to move between these positions. When open, the patient enters by a single lateral transfer from a wheelchair. The stall further includes a toilet, a shower and a lavatory mounted therein.

1 . A bath stall unit for accommodating a disabled person, said unit comprising: 
 a walled structure having a floor therein, and including a wall portion providing an access way,    a door associated with said wall portion and mounted on said structure for movement upwardly and downwardly between an open position providing access to said unit, and a closed position cooperating with said wall portion to close said unit, and    a toilet on said floor adjacent said wall portion for transfer of a person into said unit and onto said toilet when said door is in its open position.    
   
   
       2 . The bath stall unit as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said wall portion and said door are substantially coplanar.  
   
   
       3 . The bath stall unit as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said toilet has a seat at a preselected level for receiving a person, and wherein said wall portion extends upwardly to substantially said level, said door closing against said wall portion in said closed position of the door.  
   
   
       4 . The bath stall unit as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein said wall structure and said floor cooperate to provide a stand-alone room presenting said unit, and wherein said door is mounted for swinging movement about a generally horizontal axis between said open and closed positions thereof.  
   
   
       5 . The bath stall unit as claimed in  claim 4 , wherein said axis is behind said toilet, and wherein said door is configured and arranged to swing upwardly clear of said wall portion to permit lateral transfer of a person onto said toilet.  
   
   
       6 . The bath stall unit as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said wall portion includes a lip extending upwardly from said floor to prevent water escape from said unit.  
   
   
       7 . The bath stall unit as claimed in  claim 6 , wherein a head portion of said door has a bottom surface that engages said lip and a tongue that extends beyond said bottom surface in engagement with said lip to seal said unit when said door is in its closed position.  
   
   
       8 . The bath stall unit as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said door has an elongated body portion, a head portion extending transversely from a first end of said body portion, and a foot portion extending from a second end of said body portion, and wherein means is provided at said foot portion to mount said door to said structure for swinging movement of said door between said open and closed positions thereof.  
   
   
       9 . The bath stall unit as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said wall structure includes a pair of opposed walls, said toilet being disposed adjacent one of said walls, and wherein said unit further comprises a lavatory across from said toilet adjacent the other of said walls.  
   
   
       10 . The bath stall unit as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said wall structure includes a pair of opposed walls, said toilet being disposed adjacent one of said walls, and wherein said unit further comprises a shower across from said toilet adjacent the other of said walls.