Far too few public toilets in the Netherlands causing “unacceptable” problems for many

The lack of public toilets in the Netherlands is causing “unacceptable” problems for many people, especially those with gastrointestinal or liver conditions, the MDL Fonds said on Wednesday. The fund has launched a national reporting point called Restroom Refusal to officially document incidents in which people are denied access to toilets.

The MDL Fonds already ranked the Netherlands as a “toilet desert,” but the number of reports it receives from people with gastrointestinal conditions shows that the situation is even more problematic. Millions of people in the Netherlands have gastrointestinal or liver conditions. “For many, a restroom is not a luxury, but a fundamental requirement for participating in society,” said the MDL Fonds, which advocates for these patients.

A recent representative survey by MDL Fonds found that 85 percent of Dutch people believe that there should be more public toilets. 21 percent said that they sometimes avoid activities for fear of not finding a toilet. And around two-thirds regularly experience inconvenience because they can’t find a toilet to use.

“Access to a toilet is a basic requirement for freedom of movement,” said MDL Fonds director Mariël Croon. “We hear about locked train toilets or facilities at stations that close after a certain time, completely overwhelming passengers. For someone with a stoma or a chronic bowel disease, this can lead to inhumane situations, such as incontinence. With this reporting center, we want to collect these often invisible stories.”

The MDL Fonds hopes that by formally documenting incidents in which people with medical necessity are denied access to a toilet, it can urge municipalities, businesses, and organizations to take targeted measures to improve the situation.