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News
Alert: Preventing Patient Entrapment
in Nursing Home and
Hospital Beds
In
March of this year, the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services issued a report entitled:
“Hospital Bed System Dimensional and Assessment
Guidance to Reduce Entrapment”.
The
report addresses potential injuries and fatalities
resulting from patients in a health care setting
becoming entrapped in hospital beds. Over a period
of 21 years (through January of this year), the
FDA received 691 entrapment reports, in which 413
people died, 120 were injured and 158 were
near-miss events with no serious injury as a
result of intervention.
The
report notes that entrapment events have occurred
in “openings within the bed rails, between the bed
rails and mattresses, under bed rails, between
split rails, and between the bed rails and head or
foot boards”.
Not
all patients are equally vulnerable. The report
cites the population most vulnerable to entrapment
as :“elderly
patients and residents, especially those who are
frail, confused, restless, or who have
uncontrolled body movement.”
Entrapments occurred in a
variety of patient care settings, including
hospitals, nursing homes, and private homes. Long-term care
facilities reported the majority of the
entrapments.
The report provides details
on potential zones of entrapment, as well as
minimum dimensions to prevent
entrapment.
*Bernstein
& Assoc., Architects* provides “Bed Safety
Assessment Audits” (utilizing FDA-designed testing
equipment) to nursing homes and health care
institutions looking to prevent patient entrapment
in hospital beds. Please contact our office for
further details on how this program can assist
your facility in addressing this important issue.
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