Inclusive Bathrooms: Sanitary Bins for All

There are plenty of simple steps that you can take to make your washrooms more inclusive in the workplace — so, have you considered installing sanitary bins in all your washrooms?

Providing Sanitary Bins for Men
When asked to picture a sanitary bin, most people will imagine the women’s washroom — a receptacle for pads, tampons, and associated menstrual waste. However, these bins serve a wider purpose that is just as applicable to the men’s restroom. Incontinence items, sanitary waste associated with disabilities, and other personal care waste can be produced by people of all genders— including incontinence pads, and the byproducts of stomas, catheters, colostomies and ileostomies. As a result, providing a suitable receptable in every washroom can make a huge difference to the wellbeing of both staff and visitors.

Inclusive Bathrooms are Better Bathrooms
Prostate Cancer UK is leading the Boys Need Bins campaign — often, men who require access to a sanitary bin are forced to use the disabled bathroom, which can cause anxiety and discomfort for those who do not consider themselves to be disabled as they feel like they are intruding. The campaign is working to change the law and make it mandatory to supply sanitary bins in men’s bathrooms.

Why Does This Matter?
The statistics might shock you — 1 in 25 men aged over 40 will experience some form of urinary leakage each year, and 1 in 20 men aged 60 and over will experience bowel incontinence in the UK. Furthermore, 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer (rising to 1 in 4 for Black men), which is the most common type of cancer in men. As many as 60% of those requiring surgical treatment for prostate cancer may experience urinary incontinence as a result. These numbers illustrate that the proportion of men who need to dispose of sanitary materials is far higher than you might expect, and they deserve to be able to tend to their personal needs with both convenience and dignity.

To talk about making your bathroom more inclusive, you can contact Nexus here.