ICCI Bed Rails and Accessories
8
Part No 1143214
APPENDIX
SPECIAL NOTE
For your convenience, the January 2008 version of the FDA’s bed safety guidelines are provided in this section.
The information from the FDA’s brochure, published by Hospital Bed Safety Workgroup, is reproduced verba-
tim, the latest revision of which is available at http://www.fda.gov.
A Guide to Bed Safety Bed Rails in Hospitals, Nursing Homes and Home Health
Care: The Facts
Bed Rail Entrapment Statistics
Today there are about 2.5 million hospital and nursing home beds in use in the United States. Between 1985 and 2005,
691 incidents of patients* caught, trapped, entangled, or strangled in beds with rails were reported to the U.S. Food and
Drug Administration. Of these reports, 413 people died, 120 had a nonfatal injury, and 158 were not injured because
staff intervened. Most patients were frail, elderly or confused.
*NOTE: In this brochure, the term patient refers to a resident of a nursing home, any individual receiving services in a home care
setting, or patients in hospitals.
Patient Safety
Patients who have problems with memory, sleeping, incontinence, pain, uncontrolled body movement, or who get out
of bed and walk unsafely without assistance, must be carefully assessed for the best ways to keep them from harm, such
as falling. Assessment by the patient’s health care team will help to determine how best to keep the patient safe.
Historically, physical restraints (such as vests, ankle or wrist restraints) were used to try to keep patients safe in health
care facilities. In recent years, the health care community has recognized that physically restraining patients can be
dangerous. Although not indicated for this use, bed rails are sometimes used as restraints. Regulatory agencies, health
care organizations, product manufacturers and advocacy groups encourage hospitals, nursing homes and home care
providers to assess patients’ needs and to provide safe care without restraints.
The Benefits and Risks of Bed Rails
Potential benefits of bed rails include:
•
Aiding in turning and repositioning within the bed.
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Providing a hand-hold for getting into or out of bed.
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Providing a feeling of comfort and security.
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Reducing the risk of patients falling out of bed when being transported.
•
Providing easy access to bed controls and personal care items.
Potential risks of bed rails may include:
•
Strangling, suffocating, bodily injury or death when patients or part of their body are caught between rails or
between the bed rails and mattress.
•
More serious injuries from falls when patients climb over rails.
•
Skin bruising, cuts, and scrapes.
•
Inducing agitated behavior when bed rails are used as a restraint.
•
Feeling isolated or unnecessarily restricted.
•
Preventing patients, who are able to get out of bed, from performing routine activities such as going to the
bathroom or retrieving something from a closet.
Meeting Patients' Needs for Safety
Most patients can be in bed safely without bed rails. Consider the following:
•
Use beds that can be raised and lowered close to the floor to accommodate both patient and health care worker
needs.
•
Keep the bed in the lowest position with wheels locked.
•
When the patient is at risk of falling out of bed, place mats next to the bed, as long as this does not create a greater
risk of accident.
•
Use transfer or mobility aids.
•
Monitor patients frequently.
•
Anticipate the reasons patients get out of bed such as hunger, thirst, going to the bathroom, restlessness and pain;
meet these needs by offering food and fluids, scheduling ample toileting, and providing calming interventions and
pain relief.
