Looking for bed rails?

I bought kids bedrails which clip together under the mattress and can fold down. Once my Mom was not walking though, I got a hospital bed from medicare, all electric, with rails.

Ah- the bedrail debate. Many versions are available but you have to be careful- some are worse than nothing at all. A true hospital bed (not the homecare styles in homes) have a guideline to follow regarding "7 zones of entrapment" but there are no safety rules for homecare ones. Due to risk of injury/death almost none are used in assisted living and nursing homes. However anything goes for home use- once I saw one advertised "for a 250# person" with a shipping weight of about 3 pounds- huh? There is no simple answer to your question- a lot depends on the specific abilities/disabilities of the specific person. Please let me know if I can help.

Lillian, search on line for halo bed rail. This was the only kind my MIL's AL allowed to be used. Like you, it was not installed to keep her in bed but rather to give her something to hang on to when getting in and out of bed. It has worked for the past 18 months and while she objected initially, she really appreciates it now.

Not to sound like a broken record, but Wal-Mart.has several different varieties of bed rails and will deliver for $4.95 or free depending on the size of your order. I found a set of full rails for $65 and they have the smaller ones too.

I bought for my Dad the Stander brand bed rail and Dad really likes it. It's the one where you can adjust the length of the rail itself if you want it a bit longer and it has a cloth covering where one can put the TV remote, glasses, etc. It is very safe to use, chances of anyone getting tangled up in it are slim.

Dad opted not to use the cloth covering as he wouldn't be able to see the clock on his night stand. The rail starts at the headboard and goes out a foot & half or so. There is assembly to do, not easy to follow the directions and here I am usually pretty good at figuring these things out. It took awhile.

The Stander I found at a local pharmacy that also sells wheelchairs, walkers, etc. The cost was around $115 and well worth it.

I found an assit bed rail for my mom at a local medical supply store. It's simply an L shape tubular rail. The long part of the L slips in between the matteress and box spring and the short part of the L sticks up about 18 inches on the side of the bed. It's easy to install, no tools, cheap, doesn't block her in or out but provides a handy grab rail to help her get in and out of bed.

I would also research and read about the dangers of bed rails. Most states do not allow the use of bed rails in most long term care facilities, except in certain situations. I'd make sure you know all of the risks involved and how they could actually do more harm than good.

Try googling "bed assist rail". There are dozens of models out there, sites like amazon have a wide selection.

Google "Durable medical equipment, bed rails". The photos at the top of the hits show different kinds.

The 2d and 3rd kinds are the smallest and least cumbersome in terms of providing assistance for someone who just needs support to stand, without compromising space to get in and out of bed.

The others are longer and would provide more support for almost the entire length of the bed, but probably would have to be lowered and raised to get in and out of bed. For nighttime bathroom visits, that could be cumbersome.

There are also poles designed for bathroom use that could probably be used in the bedroom. They're like stripper poles. The advantage is that they're vertical, so someone could hold onto one and pull himself up. The disadvantage is that they're one pole, not two as are some of the ones you'll see when you search Google.

And they need to be securely fastened from ceiling to floor in order to provide the mandatory stability. Personally I wouldn't use these because (a) it's only one pole as opposed to 2 and (b) the ceiling to floor issue would cause me concern. Unless anchored in studs, the screws could eventually work loose and create a stability and fall hazards.

As an example, I had grab bars installed in my home in the early 2000s when my mother stayed with me. Although installed properly in the studs by a carpenter, last year I noticed one of the screws was a bit loose. I suspect the threads might be stripped.

I haven't used any so I don't have any particular brand to recommend.

Assuming you and your husband are on Medicare, I would contact DME stores in the area, ask what they have and if there are photos available on their websites. Then visit the ones that have styles that interest you.

I don't know if Medicare will pay for a bed rail; you could ask one of your husband's doctors to write a script if the staff at the DME store indicate Medicare would pick up the cost, or at least part of it.

In the past I've searched the DME section of Medicare's website to determine what they might pay for.