Adjusting the bed
Adjusting the bed is an important part of basic nursing care. A well-made bed contributes significantly to increasing the patient's comfort. Some complications (e.g. bedsores)can be prevented with appropriate treatment.Nurses change the beds of all patients, usually twice a day – in the morning and in the evening. For the seriously ill, at any time during the day as needed. Adjusting a bed, especially with a lying patient, is a very physically demanding performance. To reduce physical exertion and speed up morning work, it is advantageous if two nurses can always work at the same time, each on one side of the bed.
Editing an empty bed[edit | edit source]
CA walking patient leaves the bed before going to bed. We remove auxiliary devices from the bed, move the day table away from the bed. We place a chair in front of the bed, on which we gradually place a pillow, blanket, etc. pads. We always spread the bed down to the mattresses. Then we fix the base of the bed well, so that the sheet and the mat remain taut for a long time. If necessary, we will replace soiled linen with clean ones, or change the entire bed. In hospitals, we encounter several ways of fixing the bed sheet:
- using knotsthat are tied from the corners of the sheet,
- tying the edges of the sheet with a cloth or bandage is a very convenient way, the sheet is well fixed for a long time, the bed is still nicely made,
- we tie the ends of the sheets directly together - it can only be used where we have sufficiently wide sheets.
- foundation of the edges of the sheet, the so-called pocket - adjustment of newborn and infant beds.
As soon as we have prepared the sheet, we place a canvas mat over the middle part of the bed and slide it under the mattress. If the patient has problems with defecation or if he has a surgical wound, a skin defect, an invasive entry in the abdomen, buttocks, genitals or thighs, disposable pads, are currently placed in the middle part of the bed, which are breathable and at the same time impermeable to secretions and excreta . , protects bedding from dirt. Rubber mats, which used to be placed in the bed under the linen mat to protect the mattress in particular from contamination, are currently hardly used, as they pose a great risk for the formation of bedsores, pressure ulcers and the proliferation of anaerobic microorganisms. The mattresses have a protective coating against contamination.
We spread the blanket on the bed so that it reaches the patient's shoulders after adjustment. We bend the edges of the cover so that they are at the same time as the edge of the mattress and slide it under the mattress at the bottom of the bed. We adjust the pillow, return the assistive devices to the bed, move the table to the bed within arm's reach of the patient.
- Sheet - tie each knot separately and turn the sheet off (even).
- Pad - include it on the sides under the mattress.
- Pillow and cover (i.e. blanket cover) - when covering and handling, try not to stir up dust and pathogens.
- Include a blanket under the mattress and check everything.
- At the end, raise the sides (so that no one sits on the clean bed until the patient arrives).
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Editing a bed with a sick person[edit | edit source]
If the patient cannot leave the bed during bed rest, the work procedure is governed by the condition and capabilities of the patient. We pay extra attention to editing. We will also spread the bed up to the mattresses (we will release the blanket, mattress pad and sheet). The patient turns on his side or lifts himself up. We rid the individual layers of crumbs and garbage and turn them off well again. If the patient needs a clean sheet, we can change them under it along the length or width of the bed. The choice of method depends on the extent to which the patient is mobile in bed.
Changing the sheet along the length[edit | edit source]
If the patient can turn on his side, we put pillows and a blanket on the chair and turn him on his side. On the free side of the bed, loosen the linen, untie the ends of the sheet. We roll the used clothes up to the patient's body. Place a clean sheet, a mat on the empty mattress and cover it. We turn the patient over to the half of the bed. We collect the dirty laundry and put it in the trolley or laundry basket. We unfold, turn off and cover the sheet, the mat and turn the patient on his back. We will finish the table by adjusting the blanket and pillow. We do not forget to ask the patient how he is lying. Sometimes a seemingly small additional adjustment of the bed will greatly improve the patient's subjective feeling.
Changing the sheet across the width[edit | edit source]
We choose this method of changing the bedsheet only in the case when the lying patient cannot turn on the bed. There are always two people working at the same time. We will prepare a clean sheet for the change, which we will gather along the width of about three quarters. We start the work process as when changing a sheet along the length. After loosening the base of the bed and removing the pillow, we gather the used sheet under the patient's head. We insert the free part of the clean gathered sheet under the upper mattress and begin to release the gathers. We stand sideways to the bed. With the hand that is closer to the sick person, we gradually lift the sick person, with the other hand we roll up the used one and spin the clean sheet. During the change, we make sure that the patient does not lie directly on bare mattresses and that we spread the clean sheet evenly under the patient. Additional treatment of the sheet is very difficult. If we have changed the bedsheet, we will prepare the mat. Place the canvas mat over the bed, roll it from both longitudinal sides towards the center into a double roll and fold it in half. We insert it prepared in this way under the patient's buttocks about halfway down the bed, spread it out and unfold both rolls to the sides. We will complete the adjustments as described above.
