Many people are surprised to learn that the bathroom is one of the most potentially dangerous rooms in a home. The combination of tile floors, hot water, and electrical devices can lead to a wide variety of personal injuries. This is why organizations like the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) and the National Drowning Prevention Alliance (NDPA) use January to promote National Bath Safety Month.
The Las Vegas injury lawyers at ER Injury Attorneys would like to do their part to raise awareness during National Bath Safety Month. Below is information on how slips and falls, burn injuries, and electric shocks can take place in the bathroom and what can be done to avoid these highly-preventable injuries.
Three Types of Bath Injuries and How to Prevent Them
The bath and the area around it is a unique environment that poses unique hazards. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 200,000 are treated for non-fatal bathroom injuries every year. In the experience of our Las Vegas injury lawyers, these are the three most common types of bath accidents.
Slips and Falls
Most bathrooms have tile floors to help repel water generated by showers and to help prevent mold. Unfortunately, these tiles can become extremely slippery, which can lead to slip and fall accidents. These types of injuries are especially common when exiting a bathtub or shower. While slips and falls near the bath are common, the good news is that they’re easy to avoid with a few simple precautions:
- Use bath mats or non-slip rugs throughout the bathroom
- Install grab bars if the bath will be used by elderly people or those with weak joints
- Take slow and deliberate steps when exiting the bath or shower
Hot Water Burn Injuries
Burns and scalds are common injuries that can happen in the bath, especially when people are in a rush. In a perfect world, water heaters would act consistently every hour of the day, but there are many factors that can affect their performance, such as seasonal temperatures, how many other people in the household are using hot water, your particular unit’s capacity, and more.
Since water heater performance can be inconsistent, the time it takes to generate hot water can vary and, if you’re not careful, this can lead to scalds and burns. To prevent these types of injuries, our Nevada injury lawyers suggest:
- Running cold water first, then adding hot water: one of the most common bath mistakes is running hot water before cold. This is an easy way to get scalded. Whether you’re using a bathtub, shower, or sink, you should run cold first and then warm it up with hot water.
- Mixing the water in the tub before entering: many people are surprised to learn that hot spots can form in bath water, especially in large bathtubs. These hot spots can lead to burns. Thankfully, such burns are preventable by giving the water a robust swirl to even out the temperature.
Electrocution Injuries Caused by Appliances
Some bathrooms are full of electric devices, such as hair dryers, curling irons, electric toothbrushes, electric razors, and water flossers. While some of these devices are water-resistant, some are not. This can be particularly hazardous when the devices are left near a full bathtub. All it takes is a second of carelessness to knock a high-powered electric device into the water, leading to a catastrophic injury or wrongful death. To avoid these potentially serious injuries, our Las Vegas injury lawyers suggest:
- Keeping electric devices as far away from the bath while the tub or shower is being used
- Using GFCI (ground-fault circuit interrupter) outlets near the bathtub or shower. These are outlets designed to detect any imbalance in the electric current and will shut off the power automatically when an imbalance takes place.
Please Share These National Bath Safety Month Tips
The Las Vegas injury lawyers at ER Injury Attorneys hope that this blog has given you a better understanding of the major types of bathroom injuries. Please share these National Bath Safety Month tips with your family and friends to keep everyone safer. If you suffer a bath injury and believe that it was caused by a defective product then contact us for immediate assistance.
You can reach ER Injury Attorneys’ team of accomplished Nevada lawyers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We are available by phone at 702-878-7878 and online through LiveChat or secure contact form. Our firm represents injury victims throughout Nevada, including Henderson, Summerlin, Pahrump, Boulder City, Laughlin, and other areas of Southern Nevada.
Our attorneys are committed to getting you the highest settlement allowable by law, while allowing you to focus on recovery without the stress of dealing with insurance companies. Take the first step towards the money that you deserve for your injuries and reach out to ER Injury Attorneys today.