Handicap Hotel Rooms---good, bad, and ugly

[Nuts]

I have found a new favorite hotel!! We stopped at a Drury Hotel last night, after trying two other hotels (one had no roll in showers and the other had the bed on a box instead of legs). This hotel is 5 years old, so it was built to comply with ADA. The room is huge and so is the bathroom. The bathroom floor slopes into the shower, no barrier at all. There is space next to the toliet if PALS is still transferring that way, and I think we could even use the Hoyer in there if we wanted (a pan under the shower chair is easier now when traveling).

The entry hallway is very wide and turns into the room, so I can come and go without the world seeing hubby in bed.
We have paid more for a lot less. They also offer heavy snacks (you could make a meal) and one free drink in the evening and breakfast in the morning.

At one Marriott property we were told they'd just undergone an ADA review by a corporate team, and that beds on pedestals passed. That may be so, but it didn't work for us. I found the email addresses of the CEOs of Marriott and Choice Hotels and sent them both email explaining about patient lifts and asking that they add beds on frames to their Accessible room standards.

Becky

 

[Nuts]

I have a response from Choice Hotels this morning. Their hotels are independently owned and operated, so they have the choice of how far to go with accessibility (beyond ADA, of course). They advise calling each hotel in advance. As I will explain when I respond, often the people we talk to don't know about the bed frames.

I'm on the search for a chain that owns it's hotels and specifies bed frames.

Oh, this Drury hotel room has two seperate shower valves for the standard shower head and hand wand, not a diverter where you chose between the two. The slope on the floor starts outside of the shower area, so water drains nicely. It is the easiest one to shower Matt in so far--anywhere but home.

 

[Diane H]

Handicapped Accessible means that there are no stairs or steps to get to the room and the door is wide enough to get through in a wheelchair. That is all it means!
Handicapped Equipped adds little to that. Bathroom grab bars for us and phones and fire alarms for the deaf are the other added equipment.
There doesn't seem to be a title for the type of room we need (FUBAR Equipped?) People at chain hotel's national reservation desk may have only that basic information about a room. It is imperative to make your reservation by calling the hotel where you will be staying directly. Even the same hotel chain can have differently equipped rooms in the same city. Ask specific questions about the things you will need. Roll in shower? Rolling shower chair? Enough space in the bed area and/or bathroom to operate a hoyer lift? At least 6 inches of open space under the bed for the legs of a hoyer lift? Roll under sink? Are rentals of needed equipment available nearby? (hospital bed, shower chair, hoyer lift) You will have to bring your own lift sling since they can't be rented for sanitary reasons. Ditto with a commode. I suggest a bed pan be brought along in case the toilet space isn't good for transfers.

 

[Nuts]

Diane, I've even asked the questions and been given incorrect info on the phone.

For long-term stays or when we know where we will be, I always call and query, but when driving across country it's sometimes difficult to plan. It's Matt's job to research where we think we'll end up, but he's not always up to it.

I know we are a small--very small--subset of the handicapped population, but I'd love to be able to create a list of of places we KNOW work well.

I will definately look for newer buildings in the future, as they are often built with ADA in mind and have more space.

 

[Diane H]

Getting wrong info from the desk person does happen! I have been tempted to ask to talk to a housekeeper. They have actually been in the rooms!

 

[gooseberry]

We were in touch with corporate marriott last year after the trip out west. Julien wrote them a lwtter sbout what is needed vs available.

We also stayed in an accessible best western that was newly built. It had a huge gorgeous roll in shower and sink you could roll under. No lips to get over and a very comfy bed on legs that sat high so transferring was easy.

During sah construction we stayed at a best western in a handicapped room. Bed on a box, lips to cross, tub with bench and regular sink.

Guy that owned it and i had a talk. He said it met all requirements. I pointed out that it did for everyone except the people that need the room.