CALGARY, AB - The urge to go to the washroom when you are out in public can be panic inducing.
For people with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, it creates even more anxiety.
November is Crohn's and Colitis Awareness Month.
Crohn's and colitis are autoimmune diseases that cause the body to attack healthy tissue, leading to the inflammation of all or part of the digestive tract, resulting in the frequent and urgent need to use the washroom.
Crohn's and Colitis Canada is asking businesses across the country to sign on to the GoHere Washroom Access Program.
Businesses who agree, along with other public washroom locations, are mapped in the GoHere mobile app. Users can use the app to find nearby washrooms, and plan routes based on where washrooms are along the way.
"After introducing the GoHere Program in Calgary, we're ready to expand across the country," Crohn's and Colitis Canada president and CEO Mina Mawani said in a news release.
"But we need support to make this a success. We're asking Canadian businesses and organizations to register their washrooms on the GoHere app, and help make a difference for people living with Crohn's or colitis."
GoHere app is available for iPhone, Android, and Blackberry TouchScreen devices. Businesses interested in being included in the GoHere app should contact Crohn's and Colitis Canada by email at [email protected].
Crohn's and Colitis Canada is also calling on the federal government to grant Canadians with Crohn's, colitis and other incontinence issues, washroom access in all federal government buildings and government-operated service facilities not requiring security clearance.
Canadians can voice their support by signing the petition at action.crohnsandcolitis.ca.
