My Dad has ulcers on his lower tailbone and heels. Any advice how to make him more comfortable while sitting?

You might ask the home care nurse if you can get a hospital bed with an alternating pressure mattress. This would give him a more comfortable place to sit, recline and sleep and the mattress would shift his position to help avoid bed sores. He's probably uncomfortable moving, so the mattress would move for him.

The nurse could check to determine if Medicare would pay for it; it did for my father.

You might also try a fleece throw; you can get a yard or so of fabric at Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts, double it over and let him sit on it. Alternately, soft fleece blankets might help as well.

I don't have answers to your other questions, but am also wondering if in his advanced stage of cancer he might be more comfortable in hospice, where these aids could be provided for him.

You have to get his heels off the bed, bandaging is not enough. Place a pillow or rolled up towel, etc under his ankles so his heels are not touching the bed. Un bandaged is better so air circulation can help healing process. As for the spine, we finally got a gel mattress, they called it. It looked like an egg crate design. It has made all the difference. Can he lay on his sides? Put pillows between his knees and ankles when laying in either side to keep back alignment. You have to relieve the pressure on these spots to get them to heal and to prevent new bedsores from forming. If you can't reposition him often. You have to make sure that special care is taken to keep the pressure off of these trouble spots. Ask your OT for the special booties for the heels. They look like big triangles with lambskin inside of them for his feet. My MIL is in SNF and we fight this constantly as she is totally bed ridden. God bless you.

Recliner, lift chair would be the best option for the day. Air mattress is a must. "Zero gravity" position is the best and he has to be moved as often as possible. "Doughnuts" will help you. Indeed, good doctors advice against those.
Most important it not even putting bandages, but cleaning/healing those wounds and preventing new ones. Use organic oils to clean and prevent bedsores. I usually put couple drops of Lavender for healing and Purification for preventing infection. Check with Young Living company for the best therapeutic pure grade oils. Do not buy any oils which are not recommended to swallow. That means it's not really pure as advertised.

you have already tried the donut without sucess. if your dr will prescribe and alternating pressure matress you can move it to his recliner during the day. A soft piece of foam covered with real sheepsking for the chair at the table.
Now for the heels. bandaging will only keep them clean what they need is air. There are special pressure reliving booties that an equipment company can provide with a prescription. Failing that there are small donuts that you can set the heels in you could actually make these yourself. Take a piece of 4" thick foam and cut a square about 8" X 8" and round off the corners. Cut a small circle in the centre of the foam abour 2" across and measure to dad's heels. it should be slightly too small. Now take strips of cloth and wind them round the donut firmly but not so it is really hard. Test for size and make a second one. Place soft pillows lengthways under the legs and rest the heels on the donut. Again if you can get sheepskin a piece of this under the heels is comportable on it's own or over the donut. Getting the sheepskin may be difficult but if you have thrift stores close by they some times have sheepskin coats you can cut up. Fleece is not a good substitute.
As Elena says donuts to the bottom have fallen out of favor because it is thought that the outer edges taking the pressure can cause additional sores.
Don't feel that you are failing because dad has developed sores. they are very common at the end of life whwn nutrition and mobility decline. all you can do is follow the advice you are given to keep clean and change position frequently. if you don't already have hospice now would be a good time to have them come in. they can provide any equipment you may need and a caneer diagnosis is usually sufficient for admission.

As ProvidenceLane says DO NOT USE A DONUT! It cuts down on the circulation to the center of the area in the middle of the donut.

The more that you keep him off his back the better. When sitting, a foam rubber cushion or egg crate cushion helps.It sounds like he needs to be turned every 2 hours faithfully. He should not sit in one position for long periods of time.

Good nourishment is important. With cancer, he probably does not have a good appetite. Hi calorie, hi protein drinks are good. Protein is important for wound healing.

The home health nurse should work out a program for you regarding turning and nourishment.

It only hurts if you try to flatten the angle of your feet as you do for walking. Go on line to FootSmart to see options. I bet you could come up with some of your own (a 45 degree angle that come against the sole of the foot for example).

1.. Cut out cushion so that coccyx does not touch it.

2. Have a wound nurse specialist treat the wound. Very serious injury and in-way for infection.

Treat his condition as an emergency!

3. Heels off all surfaces. Again, wound nurse specialist to treat.

I was a home care nurse for years. The best thing to do is purchase a pressure relief cushion at your local pharmacy. They look like a donut! Also use barrier cream to help protect the ulcers. If they look infected (red, purulent drainage, irritated). I would take him to a local wound care facility. Most hospitals have wound care specialists who work at a clinic.

I am so sorry to hear your dad has ulcers. I took care of my mother for years until she recently passed away. Not sure why I haven't removed my name from this list. I guess it is my way of still dealing with her death.

I had so much success using alternating pressure mattress, rotating her at least every two hours and using a product called "Wound Care - Healing Formula" sold by Herbal Healer. My mother developed a sore on her heels and this worked wonders. I had her caretakers use it regularly if the saw some redness developing. She never got any more ulcers once we used the alternating air mattress and rotating her (at least every two hours) religiously. To help heal those quickly order bottles of Wound Care at only $20 per bottle. It will help give him the relief he deserves. The link is below;

herbalhealer/healingformula.html

God Bless and I hope you remember to take care of yourself, which will ensure your father will always be in good hands. Find other caretakers to give you a break and write a regimen and schedule so you will feel comfortable when others are caring for your father.

Grace