hospital bed- pros/cons

[Kristina1]

Can people share thoughts on getting a hospital bed vs sticking with regular bed?

 

[azgirl]

I have done great with adjustable bed with good mattress. We have two twin beds both adjustable that still are pushed together, but could be separated for better access.

disadvantage of this is bed can't raise up, but my caregivers don't mind.


it makes me feel more normal!

 

[MVFinVA]

We were given an adjustable king size bed from Flex-a-Bed that had been with two previous PALS/CALS. I was told that both couples were able to use the bed throughout. Both sides are adjustable at the feet and head, but my PALS side also raises up. It is a very comfortable bed.

I am unable to sleep in the same room now because Dave gets up 3-4 times a night to use the bathroom (he can still walk with the assistance of a caregiver). He also has FTD and would want to tell me things loudly in the middle of the night I'm also sure my snoring didn't help things. But I still use it to hang out with him, watch tv, or nap during the day with him.

It is currently in a frame that keeps the two halves of the bed close. But I figure that if the time comes when we need access on both sides of Dave's bed, we can take away the frame and other bed.

I mentioned to the Permobil rep when he was measuring Dave that I wondered if we needed a hospital bed. His opinion was the Flex-a-Bed was more comfortable.

Mary

 

[Diane H]

It isn't the bed as much as the mattress that is important for comfort and preventing pressure sores!

That said, the pro's of a hospital bed are:

They have the advantage of raising the entire bed higher, not just the head and knees. Early on that is very helpful in helping a patient get out of bed without lifting help especially when the bed has side rails. Later, raising the bed is important in reducing back pain for caregivers when turning, bathing, etc. a patient in bed. That is really important for small caregiver/large patient situations!

Many non-hospital adjustable beds are too low to the floor to get a Hoyer or similar lift underneath.

Insurance/Medicare covers a hospital bed although you may have to arrange to pay the extra cost of electric over manual cranking. Other adjustable beds are not covered.

Hospital beds are available through free medical equipment loan closets, other adjustable beds are not.

Used hospital beds are easy to find locally and generally economically priced on Craig's List and Facebook Marketplace. They usually have not been used long term so are in good condition.

New or used bedframe, you will want a different mattress. A new hospital bed comes with a lousy mattress so buy just the bed. You will need a medical pressure relief mattress or air overlay at some point anyway. If you want to put off buying that, a standard twin mattress works fine on a hospital bed. An extra long is only needed for tall people.

Cons: Not sleeping in the same bed is hard for most couples to accept. A second twin bed can be put against the hospital bed with the height of the hospital bed adjusted to match. There are foam mattress gap wedges that are made specifically to fill and smooth the gap between the mattresses.

Hospital beds are not great looking furniture. You can just suck it up and be realistic or you can buy a nice looking headboard/footboard wood cover and nightstand from Home - TenderCare Beds

 

[KimT]

I've had a queen-size adjustable bed for quite a few years. I got it to help with neck pain (from car accident and too much computer work.) So far, it has served me well.

If and/or when I need to be in bed or need caregiver assistance, I will get a hospital bed with a very comfortable mattress.

 

[lgelb]

I will disagree a bit, Diane, to the extent that a hospital bed with no clunky headboard/footboard, neither of which is essential, goes nicely against a wall a couple of inches out and does not seem institutional with colorful linens on it. Yeah, the rail is a giveaway, but it's not big enough to stand out. (Get a side rail that goes up and down, not fixed.)

I consider a frame pretty important, to have a Trendelenburg and reverse Trendelenburg feature -- helps with urinal use, pressure relief, etc.

Also a note, probably not applicable to Kristina, that if you are 6' or so up, get a 84" bed. And everyone should get 80", not 75" as some companies try to claim is the default length.

As for width, a hospital bed needs room on all sides but the 2nd bed can still be close enough to touch. Also, twins can be made in multiple sizes -- I had one that was 30" wide to fit into our bedroom.

As a frame of reference for the pressure relief concern, Larry was 250#, immobile, had pre-existing cervical spine herniations, subluxated shoulders and could only sleep on his back. He did fine with a medical foam mattress, foam under his arms/knees/heels and furniture foam overlay. However, he transferred out of bed every day until the week he died. I believe that, nutrition and hygiene are the keys to pressure injury prevention, if at all possible (for other reasons as well, of course).

Of course, if someone is at particular risk or shows early signs, they should get however glitzy a mattress they need. But not everyone tolerates air cells or low air loss -- those certainly weren't options for Larry and wouldn't be for me. Try before you buy that sort of thing.

As Diane says, a Hoyer's legs aren't going to fit under a standard bed, so the first question, Kristina, is your plan -- who/how -- for transfers -- moving between bed and wheelchair.

 

[Atsugi]

Because the bed was slanted upward most of the day, we had to haul my PALS upward toward the head of the bed quite often--she kept sliding down.

 

[lgelb]

That's where keeping the hips/knees supported comes in, with the other buttons and we used padding and a foam belt for the hips/pressure boots for the feet.

 

[beauty4everyone]

*Hi, There, Experienced people! :
*These discussions are very helpful because I'm going to request a hospital bed soon.
*I know the head rises to sit up, and behind the knees. Will it leave the knees down and raise the feet?
*Do side rails cost extra?
*Is the mattress included?
*If the mattress quality is awful, will Medicare cover purchase from a furniture store?
*Are some bed types/brands better than others or are they mostly equivalent?
*I've looked online bit it's a bit confusing.
Thanks for your kind help!. B.

 

[lgelb]

You might want to have a look at this thread, Beauty.

Unfortunately, many of the answers to your questions boil down to, depends on the bed, depends on the supplier.

To be able to keep the knees down while raising the feet, you need the button that tilts the whole body (shown on the attached pic of our former control). So when you raise the feet, you can still control the tilt of the middle part of the body. I'm not saying this well. So we would raise the head and feet and then use the overall tilt button to sort of align the middle.

Side rails are not expensive either way but should be part of the default allowable. We mainly used ours (only used one) to loop the control around.

If a mattress is included in the package, Medicare isn't going to pay for another one. You will. Medicare will pay your region's allowable amount for a non-powered standard hospital bed + mattress. You will pay extra for a powered bed -- considered "convenience" rather than necessity.

You can go a la carte to get what you want in the way of both the frame and the mattress, if you work it out with the supplier. That's what we did, but we paid the lion's share in any case.

Ironically, I sold it after Larry died to an adult care home who bought it for a family that was paying cash to get a good bed for their loved one in the care home. Get a good bed.

The thread I linked and my earlier post in this one speaks to what you want in a bed. That and a Linak motor.

 

[Kristina1]

Thanks for all the insights! Where does one buy the special mattress Diane referred to?

 

[KimT]

I think a good mattress is very important. However, which type of mattress works best for one PALS might not be the ideal mattress for another.

Back when I bought my adjustable bed (long before ALS) I had been diagnosed with a herniation at c5/c6 and Mayo suspected I had fibromyalgia. I went with a company that made organic mattresses (I'm very chemically sensitive and had to get a doctor's order for it) that had a rubber core and organic cotton designed to help with hurting pressure points. I watched TV in bed and using pillows to prop up was only making my neck worse so that's why I got the adjustable frame. My point is that finding another mattress that helps reduce pain will not be easy. I have to take into account the chemical sensitivity and the fact that I hurt all over, every day.

My friend, who is on hospice, has not had pain. She got a standard hospital bed and did fine on the mattress that came with it. She is tiny and her live-in caregiver has no trouble attending to her needs. The last time I saw her, she had sheepskin pads under her arms for support but told me she was still comfortable in bed.

Kristina, I cannot imagine buying a mattress without trying it out but I did just that with my adjustable bed and it worked. I'm thinking since you are near a large city, there would be medical supply places with samples but I don't know. I'll probably have to go to Orlando. I'm pretty sure what bed I want but the mattress is another question.

Also, for me, I don't care if it looks clinical or not as long as it is comfortable and serves its purpose.

I plan on doing what Laurie did. I'm going to pick out what I want and let the company work with Medicare to get as much as I can paid for and I'll eat the rest. I will also have a letter from my doctor stating that I also have fibromyalgia and severe GERD. I have no idea if that will help me get them to pay for more but it can't hurt. It did work with the PWC in getting me better padding for the arms and an upgrade on the seat cushion.

 

[swalker]

I am curious to know who folks have gone through to get a hospital bed.

I have asked the folks at NuMotion (who provided my wheelchair), and they don't do beds and could not put me in touch with anyone that does.

I am covered by Medicare (Primary) and United Healthcare (Secondary).

Thanks for your help.

Steve

 

[lgelb]

Here is the link to a supplier directory by zip (check off "hospital bed") and here is more about what Medicare covers in the way of hospital beds. Of course, you don't need to go through Medicare if you don't want to.