Whether they are in a shop, office or subway station, i public bathrooms they still represent a bogeyman today, especially for women. To hold back many of them, even in the face of an urgent need, are above all the often precarious hygienic conditions and the shortage of essential devices, such as paper. To make matters worse is certainly the period, which sometimes obliges the woman to use public toilets even if she does not feel comfortable doing so. Research was conducted on this broad issue, promoted by the Initial company, also to understand how much feminine hygiene is taken into consideration outside the domestic context.
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Women and public toilets: 1 out of 5 prefer not to use them, not even in an emergency
The survey showed that, due to poor hygiene, 7 out of 10 women do not feel safe using public toilets and say they are scared just by the idea of coming into contact with surfaces. For this reason, 1 in 5 women prefer not to use them at alleven if you feel the need to. In fact, for many interviewees, public toilets were found to be dirty and lacking in essential elements, such as toilet paper, bins for the collection of sanitary towels and sanitizer for the surfaces of the toilet.
Everything gets complicated with the menstrual cycle
As we said earlier, women struggle to use public toilets in general but even more so when they have their period. The Initial survey shows that almost all of the interviewees do not feel comfortable in the toilets of shops, cinemas, restaurants, means of transport in that period. In fact, 69% of them use it only because forced by pressing personal needs. On the other hand, the situation in the office is a bit different: here the conditions of the toilets are certainly more cared for, so much so that 54% of the women involved in the survey declare that they use the toilet during the days of menstruation feeling at ease.
Satisfied with the workplace bathroom but more could be done
In workplaces, people go to the bathroom more calmly and comfortably than in other places. However, many women, albeit rather satisfied, emphasize the things that could be further improved. In fact, 58% of respondents would be happy with have the free dispenser of sanitary napkins because it would mean more attention from the world of work towards this issue. And then, 45% would like to find sanitizer for toilet surfaces and 1 in 4 women would implement office bathroom amenities even with the disposable sanitary napkins basket.
Furthermore, 84% of women have a greater incentive to use the bathroom at work if equipped with an air freshener. In fact, 25% of those interviewed are afraid of using a bathroom without a perfumer while 55% decide above all on the basis of their position and the resulting privacy.
What could be done to change perception?
The poor management, appearance and precarious hygienic conditions of public toilets have changed the perception of a service that no longer guarantees the use of basic necessities. Nowadays, with an increasingly strong attention to the psycho-physical well-being of the individual, it is necessary to turn the spotlight on a problematic situation especially for women.
According to 75% of the interviewees it is necessary give greater attention to women’s well-being already in the first phase of designing and managing the toileta very significant figure that outlines the perception of the public toilet as a very backward service.
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