She is becoming more stiff so turning seems like moving dead weight. I have pads I use to assist the turn and pull her up but even that is getting hard.
For any medical equipment, remember to check with your local Foundations - in my small town, the Arthritis Foundation had hospital beds, wheelchairs, Hoyer lifts, even canes.
They rent them for 6 months, for free! Then you call, and they rent them to you for another 6 months, same zero price - for as long as you need them! They deliver and pick up the largest items too.
I saw a lot of comments about hoyer lifts but I dismissed using one because you need to get the sling under them which is just as difficult as changing them if not more. And they take a lot of space. I did buy a hospital bed on Craig’s list which is great. The doctor refused to recommend one even though the nurse recommended it. After some pointers from the nurse rolling her to change her is easy. If I can change her right after she pees the pad does not need to be changed every time. I will say that keeping her dry is so important as rashes can develop. But with her dementia she does not always tell me. It’s not the ideal life but we manage.
There is a leg only sling you can use with the hoyer to lift the butt up. Also coat her but crack and leg joints with diaper rash cream at each change. My mom only got sores in rehabs and hospitals because I used Desitin and they used nothing. During the day, I used the hoyer to put mom in her recliner. Then stored the hoyer with the legs under moms bed
If you do not have a hospital bed, check with the local Lions Club loan closet and see if they have one, or contact her doctor and say you need one. My mom as frail as she was, was able to grip the opposite rail, which helped me to roll her. I used the washable bed pads (36x36) to help roll her.
Your Mom may be getting to a stage where she is no longer assisting in her own care. This happened to my mother, in the late stages of her dementia, and it took 2 people in her facility to move her (she weighed 90 lbs at that point). Consult her doctor. Maybe it's time for her to be in hospice. If so, she'll be eligible for additional expert advice, at-home equipment (for example, a lift, but if your mother is fragile, I don't know if it would be advisable to use a lift), supplies and care, such as caregivers who can come in to help you part-time (or could move to a hospice facility). Also connect with a local social worker to discuss your Mom's options. All the best to you.
As a RN, I have to move a lot of my patients. 3 things help me the most when I have to move patients by myself: draw sheet, Hoyer lift, and hospital bed. Draw sheet is simply a woven flat sheet folded in half and placed under the person - from shoulders down to hips. It gives me something to grab to turn my patients and to use to slide him/her up in bed. You might want to consider a Hoyer lift (rent one) to assist if lifting her and repositioning her. These are especially helpful if mom is on the heavier side. Also consider getting a hospital bed (always rent and never buy) since the controls allow you to move mom more easily. Check out a few Youtube videos that demonstrate moving people safely so you protect your back.
would love to get a response...cwillie is right a hospital bed does make caring for someone much easier. but thinking about this if it has gotten to the point where it is not safe to move mom then Skilled Nursing might be the safest option for both her and you.
Do you have a hospital bed? Being able to adjust the height and having access to the bed from both sides can make a difference. Also a PT/OT consult could be helpful, they may have suggestions about techniques and products that can make the job easier.
This is what I did. If I wanted to roll my Husband onto his right side I would stand on the side of the right side of the bed. I would gather the sheet, not a pad but the full sheet, at the hip and the shoulder and when the fabric of the sheet was just about touching the hip and shoulder I would bring it up while rolling him towards me. The sheet would support the body making the roll a bit easier. When I needed to roll him back I would gently loosen the sheet and he would roll back, I would then go to the other side of the bed and repeat the process. If I was changing the bed sheets I would gather the soiled sheet and anything soiled and roll that out and gather the clean the clean sheet and roll it under him smoothing it out as her rolled back. If she can grasp having her bring her arm over and hold the bed rail that can help her roll easier. A Hoyer Lift might make it easier to change her and the bedding.
There is a product called Lavin Lift straps. They are to be used with a Hoyer Lift. You place a strap on the upper thigh of each leg, hook it to the Hoyer and raise the lift. The straps will lift the lower body. (kinda like when you change a baby and you grasp the baby's legs and lift them up)
I searched -
"How to diaper dead weigh patient Youtube" and got this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iWC6LxLVQ4
"How to operate a Lavin Lift Youtube" and got this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jP7LJZ_jVjk
They rent them for 6 months, for free! Then you call, and they rent them to you for another 6 months, same zero price - for as long as you need them! They deliver and pick up the largest items too.
Guess anything is worth a try, right?
but thinking about this if it has gotten to the point where it is not safe to move mom then Skilled Nursing might be the safest option for both her and you.
If I wanted to roll my Husband onto his right side I would stand on the side of the right side of the bed.
I would gather the sheet, not a pad but the full sheet, at the hip and the shoulder and when the fabric of the sheet was just about touching the hip and shoulder I would bring it up while rolling him towards me. The sheet would support the body making the roll a bit easier.
When I needed to roll him back I would gently loosen the sheet and he would roll back, I would then go to the other side of the bed and repeat the process.
If I was changing the bed sheets I would gather the soiled sheet and anything soiled and roll that out and gather the clean the clean sheet and roll it under him smoothing it out as her rolled back.
If she can grasp having her bring her arm over and hold the bed rail that can help her roll easier.
A Hoyer Lift might make it easier to change her and the bedding.
There is a product called Lavin Lift straps. They are to be used with a Hoyer Lift. You place a strap on the upper thigh of each leg, hook it to the Hoyer and raise the lift. The straps will lift the lower body. (kinda like when you change a baby and you grasp the baby's legs and lift them up)