Follow
Share

94-year-old father with macular degeneration needs assistance to shower. He is disoriented in the shower but embarrassed to have assistance.

When I enquired about help with bathing my mum, I was told that the client would be covered with a towel, to give them privacy and dignity, and that carers would only wash the areas that the client couldn't manage themselves, such as hair and feet.
I was told that the client would sit in a shower chair covered in the towel (you can get a wheeled shower chair to move from bedroom to bathroom, but they're a bit expensive and bulky). Or the client would be covered with the towel when being moved by hoist into the bath.

So, I would ask whichever care company you plan to use about how they maintain dignity so that you can relay this information to your father.

My mum became too fragile, as well as afraid, to use the shower or bath hoist, but the carers used the same principles to maintain her dignity and respect her privacy when giving her a sponge bath in the bedroom.
Helpful Answer (0)
Reply to MiaMoor
Report

Hector1: Employ a male shower assistant.
Helpful Answer (0)
Reply to Llamalover47
Report

When my precious Daddy began to need help with showering, I was of course worried about his dignity. I ordered a towel with Velcro that wrapped around him like a skirt. I called it a Scottish kilt.
He would face away from me, and I was able to wash his hair, and use a wash cloth to wash most of his body. I would hand him the soapy wash cloth and have him wash his own private parts. All I could could see was butt crack, which everyone has. I would towel dry his back, hair and legs, then hand him the towel for him to towel dry his front area. Then the kilt would get wrapped around him, and then he could step out of the shower with no embarrassment. Just an idea.
Helpful Answer (7)
Reply to Tiger8
Report
Isthisrealyreal Jul 16, 2025
Good ideas!
(1)
Report
Make sure he has a shower chair and a handheld shower head. Bars in the bath/shower too. You can get suction ones. If he can wash himself, give him privacy. I put a towel on the toilet seat so I could dry Mom. Bathroom should not be cold. If its a tub, there is a bar the clamps to the side of the tub to make it easier to get in and out. Office of Aging may come and evaluate the house telling you what is needed to make his life easier. Thats if he is in your home or his.
Helpful Answer (0)
Reply to JoAnn29
Report

Ask for a male aide if one is available in his AL. That may help. If not, he can bathe with swim trunks on and wash his own genitals.

Best of luck to you.
Helpful Answer (5)
Reply to lealonnie1
Report

Ask a Question
Subscribe to
Our Newsletter