May 07, 2014
Nursing home residents who cannot easily move on their own are at risk of developing bedsores, also known as pressure ulcers or pressure sores. The best way to prevent these injuries is through careful monitoring and frequent repositioning, but modern technology can help by keeping the skin dry and relieving pressure in vulnerable areas.
Keep reading to learn more about pressure sore prevention clothing and underwear designed to prevent bedsores. If your loved one suffered a preventable pressure ulcer, our Illinois nursing home abuse lawyer can help you consider next steps.
What Are Bedsores, and Why Is Prevention So Critical?
Bedsores are unsightly, extremely painful wounds that develop on the skin at pressure points on the body, such as hips, elbows, and heels. Normally forming at locations where the skin is pinched under the weight of the individual, these sores form open wounds that are very challenging to treat. In some cases, they may become infected. Bedsores can be fatal.
Bedsores are a significant problem in the elderly population in the United States, and it is a travesty any time a nursing home resident is diagnosed with one. These wounds are largely preventable if the resident is moved often enough, so there is almost never an excuse for a nursing home to allow a pressure ulcer to develop.
One step that nursing homes can take is to supply vulnerable residents with underwear designed to prevent bedsores.
How These Special Underwear Work
Three of the major risk factors for bedsores are immobility, pressure, and moisture. Anti-bedsore underwear is aimed primarily at addressing these last two points.
Moisture increases the risk of bedsores because damp skin breaks down faster. Moisture-wicking fibers like wool and advanced synthetics can prevent sweat from accumulating in sensitive areas. If the resident is incontinent, these same fabrics can also keep them drier for longer, giving caregivers time to clean them and change their clothes before a bedsore can form.
Pressure is also an issue: when immobilized residents remain in the same position for too long, even something as simple as a fabric seam or a crease in the fabric can irritate the skin. Seamless underwear and underwear with padding can therefore be very helpful in pressure injury prevention.
No matter what kind of underwear your loved one has, it should fit properly and be easy for caregivers to slip on and off.
Who Is Ideally Suited for Bedsore-Preventing Underwear?
Residents who are paralyzed or partially paralyzed and those who have limited mobility are ideal candidates for specially designed underwear. Similarly, any resident who is at an increased risk of developing bedsores—such as residents with diabetes—would be a good candidate for this technology.
Which kind of underwear is best suited for your loved one? It depends on their personal preferences and their risk factors. If your loved one is incontinent, you may want to prioritize underwear made from moisture-wicking fibers. A resident who uses a wheelchair might need a different type of underwear than a resident who spends most of their time lying down in bed.
This Technology Is Supplemental Care and Does Not Replace Proper Treatment
While special clothing has proven to be useful and very popular with nurses and residents alike, they are not meant to be a substitute for adequate care. Nothing has proven more effective at bedsore prevention than the in-person care and periodic repositioning done by staff at a nursing home facility.
The moment a resident enters a nursing home, the staff should conduct a thorough evaluation to determine if they are at risk of developing bedsores. Based on the resident’s level of risk, the staff should then come up with a care plan to prevent pressure ulcers. This plan could include:
- A regular repositioning schedule, where staff help readjust the resident so the same points on their body are not subjected to constant, unrelieved pressure
- Performing regular check-ups so caregivers can detect developing bedsores early and take steps to treat them
- Keeping the resident clean and dry, which includes promptly changing clothes and sheets when they become wet or dirty
Clothing designed to prevent bedsores can be helpful tool, but the fear is that understaffed nursing homes might use technologies like special mattresses or underwear in place of providing each resident with appropriate care. This is not acceptable. You may have the right to take action if this is what happened to your loved one.
What to Do if Your Loved One Developed a Bedsore
Pressure sores are not just painful: they can be life-threatening if they are left untreated and allowed to become infected.
Act quickly if your loved one has a bedsore. Alert nursing home staff to the injury: do not assume they already know about it. Ask what is being done to treat your loved one. Make sure your loved one gets the care they need, even if that means taking them to a separate medical facility.
Once your loved one is safe, you can concentrate on how the pressure ulcer happened. Take photos of the injury. Write down what you know about conditions at the nursing home and summaries of every conversation you have with staff.
Remember that the presence of ulcer-preventing clothing does not guarantee that your loved one is receiving proper care. A nursing home abuse law firm can help you evaluate the available evidence and let you know about next steps.
Contacting a Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Attorney
Bedsores often signal that a resident is not receiving proper care and may indicate neglect. If your loved one has developed a bedsore while living at a nursing home facility, please contact our law firm immediately: our Illinois nursing home neglect lawyer can help you take action. The Rooth Law Firm can be reached either online or by telephone today.
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