Elderly Bed Alarms

Keep Your Loved One Safe at Night

Falls can be particularly devastating to the elderly, resulting in decreased mobility and long term changes in independence.

Bedtime.

The day is finally over and you are exhausted.

But just like when you had a newborn baby, you spend the night hours half asleep and half awake, worried that your elderly loved one has fallen out of bed.

There is a solution and it is relatively simple.

Using bed alarms can allow you to rest peacefully, knowing that if your gramma gets up at night, the alarm will sound and you can reach her in time.

We used them frequently as a first intervention for patients that were high fall risk.

There are two basic types of bed alarms that are available today that are reasonable priced. Some of the laser alarms can be quite expensive and we will go into those later.

The most common and inexpensive kind is a magnetic alarm. Medline makes a great unit called the Medline Advantage Magnetic Alarm.

One end will clip to their clothing and the other end attaches to a magnetic pad. If the connection is broken, an alarm will sound.

There are advantages to this system, primarily the low cost and ease of operation.

There are also a few disadvantages.

At times, the alarm will trigger if the connection is broken when they are turning over in bed. The clip can be a problem as well, especially if your loved one has delicate and fragile skin.

The other primary type is a pressure pad with alarm.

The pad is placed on the bed, under the bottom sheet. When your loved one is lying on the pad, the alarm is silent.

If they should get out of bed and the pressure is released, the alarm will sound.

The pressure pad decreases the number of “false alarms”, although they still can happen.

There are more expensive the magnetic alarms, but the cost can be well worth it in the long run.

Whichever type you chose, make sure you can hear the alarm from your bedroom so you can go and assist.

If you find that you can’t, try setting up a baby monitor between the two bedrooms. That will assure that you can hear the alarm when it triggers and provide assistance prior to a dangerous fall.

They may be trying to rush to the bathroom to prevent bed wetting or they may be having side effects from medications that are taken at night, causing a little more weakness or light headedness.

Prevention of falls is paramount in assuring that the elderly live a longer and happier life.

Fall prevention is just as vital at home. Injuries from falls account for a significant number of admissions to both acute care and long term care.

A successful home care situation must include fall prevention, and the use of bed alarms can help prevent falls and injuries.Whichever system you chose, using bed alarms will assure for the safety of your loved one at night.

If you have any questions or can’t decide which system to choose, just contact me directly and I can assist you in choosing the right system for your specific circumstances.

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