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2 APPENDIX
The Benefits and Risks of Bed Rails
Potential benefits of bed rails include:
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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.
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Providing easy access to bed controls and personal care items.
Potential risks of bed rails may include:
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Strangling, suffocating, bodily injury or death when patients or part of their body are caught between rails or between the bed rails and mattress.
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More serious injuries from falls when patients climb over rails.
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Skin bruising, cuts, and scrapes.
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Inducing agitated behavior when bed rails are used as a restraint.
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Feeling isolated or unnecessarily restricted.
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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:
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Use beds that can be raised and lowered close to the floor to accommodate both patient and health care worker needs.
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Keep the bed in the lowest position with wheels locked.
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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.
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Use transfer or mobility aids.
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Monitor patients frequently.
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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.
When bed rails are used, perform an on-going assessment of the patient's physical and mental status; closely monitor high-risk patients. Consider the
following:
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Lower one or more sections of the bed rail, such as the foot rail.
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Use a proper size mattress or mattress with raised foam edges to prevent patients from being trapped between the mattress and rail.
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Reduce the gaps between the mattress and side rails.
The FDA's Brochure
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