My 97 year old mother had a stroke and had to move to a nursing home about 7 months ago. Because of left neglect, she falls out of bed, falls out of her wheelchair, falls when trying to transfer, etc.
She has many painful injuries that are causing many more issues for her.
She has asked for a railing all around her bed since, she has fallen out of the head of her bed in confusion in the middle of the night.
She has asked for a wheelchair that’s called a Geri Chair with a back-slanting seat so that she won’t fall out if she leans forward.
She has asked for a seatbelt to prevent falls from her armchair.
But all of these safety measures are forbidden since they are “restraints.”
I understand the regulations regarding restraints, but I’m astonished that my mother’s extensive injuries from all of her falls will be continuing, and absolutely nothing can be done.
Does she need to just accept this?
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Question has been asked before.
You may need to get legal advice to push this through. When you research "use of restraints" you'll quickly find yourself in a minefield, but current momentum is all in the direction of preventing the use of unnecessary restraints (of whatever sort) to limit the freedom of movement of people without their consent.
What isn't being addressed so much, because everyone's attention is still on freeing unwilling elders from the overuse of sedatives and physical barriers - with the consequent increased risks of side effects, pressure sores and muscle atrophy - is a clear, straightforward process for nursing homes to use aids such as bed rails and safety belts for residents for whom these things are appropriate, useful and comfortable.
You can, for example, no longer confine a confused old lady to her wheelchair "for her safety." And so I should hope - this kind of thing was a widespread abuse which resulted in terrible quality of life and dreadful neglect. But the trouble is that nursing homes now have to jump through all sorts of hoops to install the sorts of adaptive equipment that your mother is actively asking for, and it's a lot easier for them to say it's the law, they're not allowed.
Demonstrable clinical need + actively consenting resident should make it possible for her to have the equipment she wants. Look up "legitimate use of restraints in [name of your state]" and see if you can find the relevant guidelines for making an application.
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