Hospitals and care facilities spend a lot on supplies. But some facilities waste valuable equipment by letting it go to waste—either through misplacement or by cavalierly throwing out useful items.
That waste swells up the cost of health care. And it’s putting patients at risk. It’s time to upgrade, say experts.
1. Damaged Mattresses
Mattresses and bed decks are high-touch surfaces that are susceptible to infection. Hospital beds must be properly cleaned and disinfected to minimize infections. Regular inspections and repairs are vital to ensure the safety of patients and staff.
A recent study conducted by a Xavier University professor found that damaged mattresses are commonplace in hospitals. The researchers inspected 727 beds and mattresses in four midwestern hospitals and determined that the majority (523) had varying degrees of damage. More than half required replacement of the mattress cover, and one-fourth (176) needed complete replacement of the cover and core. They also observed stains on the mattress cover, rusty bed frames and other signs of wear and tear.
The results of the study highlight that mattresses are more susceptible to contamination than other components of a hospital bed. Despite routine cleaning and disinfection, hospital beds and mattresses can harbor pathogens such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
If you’re looking to get rid of a mattress, consider recycling it or donating it instead of throwing it out in the trash. Check with your local municipal offices to see what options are available, including specialty recycling programs. If you’re a handy person, you might be able to dismantle your mattress and sell or recycle its parts. Alternatively, try an online marketplace such as Facebook Marketplace or Freecycle to find someone who can use it.
2. Infection
While disinfection and sterilization practices are critical to fighting infection in healthcare environments, the best defense against HCAIs is keeping surfaces clean, as well as essential pieces of equipment in healthcare settings. Unfortunately, outdated furniture often has surface porosity that allows pathogens to thrive. For example, porous fabrics like wood absorb moisture and provide an ideal environment for microbial growth. To minimize the spread of bacteria, hospital furniture should have a fluid-resistant fabric cover that is compatible with bleach cleaners.
Additionally, the physical wear of outdated furniture can also allow for pathogens to thrive. Rips, tears, and abrasions on furniture can create breeding grounds for germs and make them more difficult to wipe clean. This is why it’s vital that hospitals upgrade to durable healthcare chairs made with sturdy materials.
Healthcare furniture should also be designed with the ability to withstand the constant cleaning of healthcare facilities. This means that it should have a fluid-resistant fabric, like vinyl or polyurethane, and the chair arm caps should be made of nonporous material. This will prevent the chair arms from becoming a breeding ground for germs.
Another way to help reduce the likelihood of infection is by recycling large equipment, such as used hospital beds, rather than throwing them away. There are many platforms that make it easy for hospitals to list their old equipment for auction, where buyers can bid on it and get the piece of furniture they need without paying full price.
3. Damaged Bed Rails
Aside from being comfortable and functional, furniture used in hospitals and health care settings needs to meet a number of criteria that are typically higher than those for furniture designed for use at home. For example, hospital furniture must be sturdy enough to withstand frequent use and abuse, while meeting strict safety standards.
Unfortunately, this can sometimes prove difficult, particularly with bed rails. In fact, the MHRA has received adverse incident reports involving bed rails that have resulted in patient harm or death. The majority of these incidents have involved entrapment.
One incident that the MHRA has investigated involved a resident at a nursing home who died after becoming caught between the footboard and the bed rail. The home had fitted third-party bed rails to a divan bed, which produced a gap large enough for a person to become entangled in, leading to postural asphyxiation.
While nursing homes need to be able to adjust and adapt their equipment, they should make sure that beds are fitted with appropriate bed rails based on the resident’s specific needs. These should also be inspected regularly and, as needed, replaced. In addition, it is important to make sure that all devices are correctly fitted and followed the manufacturer’s instructions for use. Also, when they are not in use, they should be kept in a safe and secure place and, if found to be unsuitable, removed and appropriately destroyed.
4. Unusual Odors
Hospitals must adhere to strict standards when it comes to furniture and medical equipment. They must be able to withstand heavy usage while still being comfortable and non-intrusive. The materials must also be durable and easy to clean. Additionally, hospitals must consider public perception when it comes to furniture, as shabby looking pieces may not instill confidence in patients or visitors.
Fortunately, newer furniture is designed with these requirements in mind. For example, the units and cabinets should be suspended far enough off of the floor to allow for easy cleaning underneath and around them. They must also be made of non-porous, seamless materials to prevent bacteria from growing on them. Lastly, hospitals must choose furniture with antimicrobial treatments to help keep germs at bay.
The strange smell associated with hospitals is caused by a combination of factors. Some of the culprits are disinfectants, which have a strong and unpleasant odor. Others are a result of the body decomposition process, which emits a variety of chemical compounds that have recognizable odors. These compounds include cadaverine, putrescine, skatole, indole, hydrogen sulfide, methanethiol, and methyl disulfide.
The good news is that a lot of these problems can be avoided by choosing furniture that is created for the healthcare environment. The best way to do this is by working with a supplier that builds healthcare values into their products. Benchmark’s range of HTM 63 furniture and HTM 71 cabinetry and worksurfaces are created to meet these standards, and they can help you improve infection control within your facility.
5. Broken Bed Frames
A broken bed frame is a huge problem for hospital facilities, because it poses the risk of crushing injury or death. When a bed frame collapses, it can crush patients and medical staff alike. This is why a recent class action lawsuit filed against national mattress retailer Mattress Firm alleges that the company sold and profited off of its Bed Tech HR Platform bed frames, which randomly collapsed due to design defects and posed a crush hazard.
Bed frames can also break down over time due to wear and tear. Older bed frames often use wooden slats to support box springs and larger mattresses, and these can break down or bend if they’re not properly maintained. Look underneath your hospital bed to see if the slats are bowed or cracked, and replace them as needed.
Some parts of a hospital bed can be simple to repair, like wheels or cables, but other parts require the expertise of biomedical equipment technicians. Hospital beds that have a malfunctioning program can be the most difficult to fix, as they may require a complete system reboot.
When a hospital bed frame breaks down, it’s important to remove it from service until you can call a junk removal company. Wood and metal are both recyclable, so you can donate or sell wooden bed frames to a lumber yard or scrap metal recycling facility.
6. Failing Compression Devices
When hospital equipment is not properly inspected, maintained or replaced on time, patients could be put at risk. In fact, a recent study of six Wisconsin hospitals found that none had effective systems in place to transfer equipment needing maintenance from the hospital floor to a service point in a timely manner. This exacerbates risks and increases the chances of incidents.
For example, a patient in a critical care unit suffered an uncontrolled fall from her bed after staff failed to replace the sequential compression device (SCD) tubing before moving the patient. SCDs prevent deep vein thrombosis, a dangerous blood clot in the inner leg that can break off and move to the lungs, potentially causing respiratory distress or failure.
The good news is that while everything made and manufactured eventually reaches the end of its life, recycling large equipment like hospital beds is easier than ever. In fact, there are many companies that now allow hospitals to sell their used equipment to new buyers, thus recouping some of their investment and saving thousands of dollars in landfill costs.
