Chapter 21

Beds and Bed Making

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 Introduction
 Clients spend varying amounts of time in bed:
 Complete bed rest
• Client is never out of bed
 Partial bed rest
• Client can get up for bathroom
 Client uses bed only to rest, or as desired
 A clean, dry, and wrinkle-free bed:
 Promotes the client’s comfort and safety
 Helps prevent skin breakdown
 Helps prevent pressure ulcers

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 Client Room Furniture and
Equipment
 Clients’ rooms are furnished and equipped for
comfort and safety in any facility
 Overbed tables
 Bedside furniture
 Chairs
 Privacy curtains and screens
 Closet and drawer space
 Bathrooms
 Beds

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Slide 3
 The Client’s Bed (1 of 7)
 Do the following to keep beds neat and clean:
 Straighten linens whenever loose or wrinkled, and
at bedtime.
 Check for and remove food and crumbs after
meals.
 Check linens for dentures, eyeglasses, hearing
aids, sharp objects, and other items.
 Change linens whenever they become wet, soiled,
or damp.
 Follow Standard Practices.

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 The Client’s Bed (2 of 7)
 Types of Beds
 Regular bed—twin, double, queen, king size
 Hospital bed—electric or manual controls

 A good mattress is neither too hard nor too

soft
 Alternating pressure mattress is a special mattress
that has alternating areas of pressure of air, gel or
water baffles to reduce risk for pressure sores

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The Client’s Bed (3 of 7)

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The Client’s Bed (4 of 7)

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Slide 7
The Client’s Bed (5 of 7)

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The Client’s Bed (6 of 7)

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 The Client’s Bed (7 of 7)
 Safety measures:
 Manually operated beds may have cranks to
elevate head and foot.
• All cranks should be pushed in after use, to avoid
anyone bumping into them.
 All beds should be left in the lowest position.
 Bed wheels are locked when giving bedside care.
 Bed wheels are locked when you are transferring
a client to and from the bed.

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 Bed Positions (1 of 8)
 There are 7 basic bed positions:
 1. Flat: Sleeping position
 2. Fowler’s position: A semi-to-upright sitting
position in bed
 3. Low Fowler’s position: The head of the bed is
elevated 15 to 30 degrees
 4. Semi-Fowler’s position: The head of the bed is
raised 30 to 45 degrees

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 Bed Positions (2 of 8)
 5. High Fowler’s position: The head of the bed is
raised 45 to 90 degrees
• Clients are often not raised above a 60-degree angle
 6. Trendelenburg position: Head of bed is lowered
and foot of bed is raised
• A physician’s order is required
 7. Reverse Trendelenburg position: Head of bed is
raised and foot of bed is lowered
• A physician’s order is required

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Slide 12
Bed Positions (3 of 8)

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Bed Positions (4 of 8)

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Bed Positions (5 of 8)

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Bed Positions (6 of 8)

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Bed Positions (7 of 8)

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Bed Positions (8 of 8)

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 Linen (1 of 5)
 When handling linens and making beds, practise
medical asepsis.
 Perform hand hygiene.
 Check linen for misplaced personal belongings.
 Dentures, hearing aids, eyeglasses, watches, jewellery
 Your uniform is considered dirty
 Always hold linens away from your body and uniform
 Never shake linens—this spreads microbes.
 Place clean linens on a clean surface.
 Never put clean or dirty linens on the floor.

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 Linen (2 of 5)
 Take only the linens you will need into the client’s
room.
 If you have taken extra linens into the room, leave
them in the client’s room.
 Collect required linens in the reverse order you
will use them.
 Place the clean linen on a clean surface.

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 Linen (3 of 5)
 Remove dirty linen one piece at a time.
 Roll each piece away from you
 Wet, damp, or soiled linens are changed right
away.
 Wear gloves and follow Standard Practices.
 Immediately place used linen in a laundry
container or linen bag.
 Soiled linens should never be placed on the
floor (as this contributes to the spread of
pathogens).
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 Linen (4 of 5)
 How often linen is changed varies with each
agency, employer policy, and care plan.
 In all settings, linen is changed when wet,
damp, or soiled.

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 Linen (5 of 5)
 A turning pad or turning sheet is a small sheet
placed over the middle of the bottom sheet.
 It is used to turn over or move the client in bed.
 Also known as a sliding pad or transfer sheet.
• Sometimes inaccurately referred to as a drawsheet.
 Where turning pads are unavailable, flat sheets are
folded into the size of a turning pad.
 Turning pads prevent pain, skin damage, and bone and
joint damage, by protecting the client’s skin from
friction and shearing when the client is moved in bed.

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 Bed Making (1 of 5)
 Safety and medical asepsis are important.
 The closed bed is made:
 After a client is discharged
 For a new client or resident
 After the bed frame and mattress are cleaned and
disinfected
 Top linen is pulled up; bedspread is pulled over
pillow

 See textbook procedure: Making a Closed Bed

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 Bed Making (2 of 5)
 The open bed is made for:
 Newly admitted persons arriving by wheelchair
 Clients who are getting ready for bed
 Clients who are out of bed only for a short time
 Top linens are fan-folded back so the client can
get back into bed easily.

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Slide 25
Bed Making (3 of 5)

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Slide 26
 Bed Making (4 of 5)
 You make an occupied bed when the client
stays in bed.
 Keep the client in good alignment.
 Follow restrictions or limits in the client’s
movement or position.
 Explain each procedure step to the client before
you do it.
 Raise bed to maintain good body mechanics
during bed making.

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Bed Making (5 of 5)

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Slide 28