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| Topic:
Healthcare beds Topic: Hospital beds |
"How
safe are occupants in healthcare beds?" As much protection as necessary, as much freedom as possible.
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In the summer of 2002, the Advanced Technical College in Osnabrück and
the Institute for Nursing Care Science at the University of Witten-Herdecke
organized a series of lectures under the topic "Prevention of Downfalls".
Lecturers included Elizabeth Capezuti and Julie A. Braun, both from the
United States and well known as experts. Capezuti, among other things,
is a member of the steering committee of the workgroup for hospital bed
safety, and Julie A. Braun, among other things, is chair of the judiciary
committee of the US workgroup for hospital bed safety. They demonstrated
that restrictive measures should not be provided within nursing care and
which psychological and physical impacts they might involve. Interested
listeners got to know how norms and regulations for bed side rails in
particular would develop in the near future -probably also in Europe.
Case by case, both lecturers were able to prove that measures restricting individual independence - also including bed side rails - were no effective protection against downfalls. Nevertheless, the use of physical restrictions and bed side rails is most frequently justified by exactly this argument: to protect nursing home occupants against falls and fall-related injuries as a precaution. "Individual independence of excited occupants who lack cooperation has been limited for years in order to be able to dominate their behaviour," said Braun and Capezuti. Nevertheless, these studies prove that restricted occupants show the same or even worse symptoms of agitation than those occupants who are not restricted. These findings suggest that applying restrictive measures to excited older occupants rather deteriorates than improves their behaviour. Furthermore, if bed side rails are raised to the high position, many occupants have a "prison-like feeling". On the other hand, side rails on healthcare beds are important pieces of equipment. Furthermore, they fulfill several tasks. The main function is to safeguard occupants who need protection. But side rails are also essential for occupants to achieve individual independence. Moreover, they should also give occupants a feeling of security by defining the outer limits of their bed. And finally, the use of side rails is important when carrying out nursing procedures at working height. The above-mentioned observations on the one hand, but also their essential tasks on the other, result in certain requirements for side rails. They must be extremely sturdy and designed so that they cannot cause any injury when in use. They should not be in full length design, but in partial elements, thus providing the possibility to arrange them as required. It should be possible to raise them gradually to several positions - again as required. And when not in use, they should not impair the attachment of peripheral devices. The side rails on Völker 3080 healthcare beds fulfil all these requirements. Originally an innovation by Völker, the two-part side rails, or assist rails, are directly integrated into the lying surface. This means that the assist rails can virtually not be seen when not in use, because they hide away below the lying surface. That way the assist rails never disturb or impair the attachment of accessories to the slide rails and can thus be easily set up directly. But Völker assist rails have still some further benefits which is why they have been patented. On the one hand, there is their practical total design, but also their extreme sturdiness on the other. This sturdiness makes them safe assist rails which not only provide safety to occupants, but also promote their individual independence. And very important: The shape, dimensions, clearances and gap widths of these assist rails fully comply with current and emerging norms, guidelines and harmonisations of standards. . Völker assist rails are divided into four sections so that they can be used in a variety of possible configurations, as required. The two-part assist rails of Völker healthcare beds are split in the middle to form a central opening that is wide enough for occupants to leave the bed unaided. This design avoids accidents which might easily occur when occupants try to climb over full length side rails. They can be raised to two positions according to the degree of protection required - maximizing occupants protection. When raised to the low position, the rails provide a bed edge indicator and an ideal assist. When raised to the high position, the rails provide additional protection. And finally, the four sections of the Völker assist rails automatically reposition during lying surface adjustment - maintaining the required protection in all lying surface positions, as well as when changing position. If appropriate - for example, in the case of mentally compromised occupants - the central opening can be completely closed by means of a slide-in spacer. Assist rails on healthcare beds are always a sensible feature if their design is absolutely safe, if they do not endanger patients, if they can provide protection required in the individual case and if, on top of that all, they provide as much freedom as possible. Press contact: ProSell! Werbeagentur GmbH Leisewitzstraße 39a 30175 Hannover Mrs. Katja Linkert Phone: +49 511 / 28 35 7-32 Fax: +49 511 / 28 35 7-18 E-Mail: katja.linkert@prosell-hannover.de |
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