An incident in which a disability campaigner fell in the shower of her hotel room has highlighted the importance of staff training and awareness in hospitality venues.
BBC News reports that Jennie Berry recently posted a photo on Instagram of herself at the 195-bedroom Mama Shelter London hotel in Shoreditch after the shower chair in her hotel bathroom collapsed, leaning her on the floor.
While the hotel room had adaptations, the red emergency cords, that should have been hanging to the floor, were out of reach, with one being tied up to the ceiling, and the other tied ‘out the way’ to a railing.
Thankfully, Berry was able to pull herself towards one of the tangled cords and call for help and was not injured.
She posted on Instagram: “I sobbed. Cried at the state I found myself in. I work so hard to be as independent as possible – yet there I was naked and slippery unable to get back into my chair unassisted crying for someone to help me. Staff scrambling round pulling me for 20 minutes, whilst I try to cover what’s left of my dignity.”
She has now urged businesses to check the adaptations within venues regularly, and ensure they are fit for purpose, as well as training staff on the basics of disability etiquette and manual handling, and to invest in emergency adaptive equipment.
A statement from the hotel said: “We want to apologise unreservedly that this unfortunate incident occurred at our hotel that caused Jennie Berry understandable distress.”
The statement added that the hotel will be checking all facilities ‘more rigorously’ in the future, as well as increasing staff training.
Disabled access review site Euan’s Guide campaigns to ensure emergency cords are accessible in bathrooms across the country and supplies cards that can safely attach to the cords and explain why they must hang to the floor, for the awareness of both guests and staff.
If you’re working from home and need to update your mobility bathroom for extra accessibility, visit our site today, or if you are interested in finding out more information call us on 01491 411041 or visit our website.
24 August,2021
