time for a hospital bed?

Wholehearted1

My dear husband is incontinent, and it is no longer reasonable to share a king size bed. He is I would say later stage 6, fully ambulatory, but has aphasia and really can do no activities of daily living by himself. Since I'm getting him a twin bed anyway, is it time to go ahead and get a hospital bed for him? I do not have any resources for a memory care facility, so in-home care is the only option right now, and maybe this is a way to prepare for probable eventualities. Any thoughts or experiences?

ghphotog

That would make sense to me. Would be helpful to keep him from falling out of bed in the future as it will be harder and harder for you to help him up if he falls as time goes on. Would he know it's a "hospital" bed? If not then I'd say go for it.

Jo C.

A hospital bed may be helpful, but that would be something for you to assess as to his accepting such a bed. Also, regular twin sheets or mattress pads usually do not fit hospital beds. Most hospital beds require twin long sheets and mattress pads and those are available without much difficulty as college students usually need that size for dorm room beds.

Insurances may cover much of the cost of a hospital bed if the patient meets criteria and if a physician orders the bed. If your husband has Medicare Part B, a rental of a Hospital Bed is covered IF the patient meets criteria; you can find the criteria by using Google. Also, the patient must have had an in person visit with the physician within the last six months. A partial overview would be that the patient requires help with positioning, or that the patient needs to have the head of the bed raised to more than 30 degrees for ease of breathing or the bed is to lessen pain and assist positioning. Side rails are usually ordered separately and an MD can document the need for those for safety purposes.

If a patient has Hospice services, they cover the cost of a hospital bed and other necessary DME rather than the family or patient regardless of insurance.

Also, to obtain Medicare coverage for DME, the physician must accept Medicare patients AND the rental agency must be contracted with Medicare. If either one is not connected to Medicare, then the bed is not covered. It is interesting in that that when the Medicare and deductible/co-pay rentals have fully covered the cost of the bed, then you own it. NOTE: One must meet deductibles and co-pays for bed rental under Medicare. The physician must also document the reasons for the medical necessity of the bed.

Other insurances also have Durable Medical Equipment (DME) coverage, and one can contact their insurance to find out what the circumstances and criteria are. Supplemental insurance may possibly also assist in coverage.

Doing a little search with Google can be helpful. When my LO needed a hospital bed, it was because the head of the bed had to be raised to facilitate breathing and also due to arthritis pain.

Sure hope it all works out for the best; let us know how it goes.

J.

CindyBum

Like JoC said, it could be your DH won't like the hospital bed.

When my mother-in-law got to this stage in her dementia, we tried a hospital bed and she hated it. She didn't sleep well, felt like it was uncomfortable and got much more agitated, making caring for her harder. We eventually sold it and returned her to her regular bed.

Beachfan

Dear Wholehearted,

A hospital bed would certainly alleviate a lot of issues as you care for DH at home. However, if a hospital bed is not a possibility, I can, hopefully, offer a little encouragement. My DH was in a MCF for 17 months at the end of his life. Your DH is much like mine was- - incontinent, unable to converse meaningfully, unable to do much of anything for himself, or by himself. My DH was able to stay in a twin bed until Hospice was engaged, and he only utilized a hospital bed (provided by Hospice) for 2 nights before he passed. His twin bed was low off the floor and there was some sort of special mattress on it that had just the slightest rise on the sides at his head and by his lower legs. He was still able to sit up with assistance, and swing his legs over the side of the bed, but the higher sides of the mattress by his head and feet kept him from accidentally falling out of bed. The caregivers were easily able to attend to him in the twin bed. You might be able to care for your DH with just a twin for a time; should you engage Hospice in the future, they will provide a hospital bed. Best of luck. It’s not easy.

Kibbee

DH has a neuro-cognitive disorder and uses a Hoyer Lift and a hospital bed with partial side rails. I knew the lift and bed were needed in order for me to continue to care for him at home, and asked his neurologist to write an order so the equipment would be covered under DH’s Medicare DME benefit. We had to go through a specific Medicare approved vendor to get the equipment. The process went fairly smoothly and it took about 4 weeks. The vendor delivered the equipment and provided instructions on how to use it.

The Hoyer Lift is a godsend in moving DH around, and the bed has helped tremendously as well. Being able to raise and lower the head of the bed allows DH to be comfortably positioned for eating, watching TV, or sleeping. (We don’t raise or lower the foot of bed very often but others may find it useful.) DH is incontinent and requires assistance with clean-up and with underwear and clothing changes. During this process DH will sometimes have to roll onto his side and having the bed rails to grab onto helps him get into and maintain that position. I also like that the entire bed can be raised or lowered to a height that makes it easier on my back when I am helping him.

DH’s previous bed was an XL Twin so I had all the necessary bedding. I found the bedding in-store at Target (prefer theirs, heavier cotton and better elastic) and Walmart. DH has never had any complaints about the bed, and seems to find it pretty comfortable.