New beds make a difference with falls prevention features | News

We have completed a massive 650-bed replacement project across the Trust since July, with an investment of just under £1m.

The rollout of the new beds is part of our ongoing strategy to deliver zero harm and improve our patients’ experience when they stay at the Royal Surrey.

The new beds have new features to help protect elderly patients, or those with dementia, who are at high risk of falling.

These include:

• movable bed platforms that lower to the floor to prevent patients falling;
• intuitive, simple controls to help patients move the head of the bed easily, so they can sit up;
• split-level side panels to make it easier for patients to get out of bed and move around to help with their recovery after an operation;
• under-bed lighting, which gives a soft glow to reduce disturbance at night-time and helps patients get back to their bed safely if they get up in the night; and
• cable tidies to keep electrical leads off the floor and prevent them getting trapped in the bed mechanisms.

Staff and patients have been enthusiastic about the replacement of the 15-year-old bed stock, praising the new beds for their better safety features.

Umesh Cheerassery, Divisional Head of Nursing, who led the project said: “The rollout of the replacement beds has been a great success and has helped us improve the quality of care for patients, especially elderly patients and those with dementia who are more at risk of falls.”

Thanks to the work of Umesh and Healthcare Partners (HPL), the work was finished in under five months, covering Haslemere Community Hospital, Milford Community Hospital and the Royal Surrey main site.