Questions
- What is a low hospital bed?
- What are the cost implications of not using a low hospital bed?
- What mattress do I have to use with the Spirit Select bed?
- Is Spirit Select different from Long-Term-Care low beds?
- Will Spirit Select integrate into our Nurse Call System?
- What areas of the hospital can the Spirit Select bed be used in?
- Can we rent and buy the Spirit Select bed?
- How has Spirit Select helped other hospitals reduce patient falls?
- Can I buy a Spirit Select bed for use in a home care setting?
- How do I contact CHG Hospital Beds customer service and technical service?
- Should I only use Spirit Select beds with my fall-risk patients?
What is a low hospital bed?
- Any bed that allows a patient's feet to sit flat on the floor while he/she is sitting at the edge of the bed with knees bent and legs at a 90-degree angle.
- The average female leg measures 15" from underside of the thigh to the bottom of the foot. The average males leg measures 16.3"
- If you subtract the thickness of a standard mattress (6"), the bed's mattress deck height needs to be between 9" and 10.3" to meet this definition.
- "Standard" hospital beds have a low height of anywhere from 15" to 22"
- Low hospital beds are recommended by The Joint Commission for use as a key component in a hospital’s falls and injury prevention program.
- Low hospital beds are typically recommended for use in cases when a patient is at risk of falls, and can reduce patient fall injuries.
- According to the ICSI: “One large health care system reported that integration of beds with features of pressure redistribution surfaces, built-in alarms and ability to get within 8-10 inches off the floor was linked to a 9% falls rate reduction within five months. ”
- The Spirit line of low hospital beds is not limited to fall-risk use, as the bed’s high-low feature is suitable for any use in a med-surg unit.
What are the cost implications of not using a low bed?
- Patient Falls is one of the Hospital Acquired Conditions that Medicare will no longer pay for.
- The average Medicare payment for a fall from bed is $24,962.4
- The average cost of a fall related injury is $33,785.5
- Annual patient sitter costs can reach upwards of $300,000 per year for a 570 bed facility.
- Pain and suffering of patients and their families
What mattress do I have to use with the Spirit Select bed?
The Spirit line of hospital beds can accept most sleep surfaces or therapy systems. The mattress desk has an 'open architecture' which allows the use of a sleep surface that is 36" wide and up to 84" long. For some patients, a sleep surface with raised side bolsters is recommended to complement the Spirit's low bed height in reducing patient falls from bed.
Is Spirit Select different from Long-Term-Care low beds?
Yes. Spirit Select has many more Med-Surg features than long-term Care (LTC) low beds. The following Spirit Select features are not available on LTC low beds.
- Patient Positioning Buttons: one-button Cardiac Chair, Auto Contour, Emergency CPR, Trend/Reverse
- Nurse Call Capabilities
- Patient Scale
- Integrated 3-Zone Bed Exit Alarm
- Plastic-molded quad-rails and plastic-molded head/footboard
- Side rail patient controls
- Central-Lock-and-Steer braking system with two brake/steer foot pedals.
Will Spirit Select integrate into our Nurse Call System?
Yes. Spirit Select integrates with most nurse call systems. It is important to specify the model/make of your hospital's Nurse Call System when ordering your Spirit Select beds so that the appropriate nurse call cables can be shipped with the beds.
What areas of the hospital can the Spirit Select bed be used in?
Spirit Select can be used in any Med-Surg patient room because it has all of the same features as regular hospital beds. Many hospitals prescribe the Spirit Select bed to all Fall-Risk patients as part of their Fall Prevention Program. To determine a patient's fall-risk, a 'Fall Risk Assessment' must be completed. Areas within hospitals that tend to have a large number of fall-risk patients are: Rehab, Neurology, Psych, Med-Surg, Pediatrics, LTC wings, etc.
Can we rent and buy the Spirit Select bed?
Yes. Spirit Select is available for both rental and purchase.
How has Spirit Select helped other hospitals reduce patient falls?
Spirit Select is used in some of the nation's top ranked hospitals. A list of customer references can be supplied upon request. Several fall prevention studies involving CHG low hospital beds have also been conducted, and their results demonstrate the effectiveness of a CHG Hospital Beds low bed in reducing falls. For a copy of these studies please contact CHG Hospital Beds at 1-866-516-5446.
Can I buy a Spirit Select bed for use in a home care setting?
The line of Spirit Select hospital beds have been designed for hospital environments. If you are looking for a low bed for home care use, we recommend that you contact Invacare Corp. at www.invacare.com; or Shoppers Home Health Care at www.shoppershomehealthcare.ca, if you reside within Canada.
How do I contact CHG Hospital Beds customer service and technical service?
Customers can call CHG Hospital Beds toll-free at 1-866-516-5446. Our offices are open Monday to Friday, 8:30am - 5pm EST. If you require technical service, please have the serial number of your product ready.
Should I only use Spirit Select beds with my fall-risk patients?
Spirit Select is med-surg low hospital bed loaded with unique safety feature that can improve the care of med-surg patients. A Spirit Select bed has infinite height adjustments, and can go lower and higher than any other hospital bed on the market. Many hospitals use Spirit Select beds with all of their med-surg patients because of all the safety features the bed offers. If you are using a Spirit Select bed with a patient that is not at-risk for falls, you can adjust the bed height to suit your patient's needs. If your patient's fall-risk increases during their care, you have peace-of-mind knowing that the bed can be adjusted to 10" low.
