Bedsores, pressure ulcers, decubitus ulcers…whatever name you use describes a horrible condition which can be very painful, become an entry point for infection and can lead to death!
The St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria, Illinois pipes in Olympics-style theme music over the audio system every two hours. The music is a signal to the hospital staff that it’s time to perform a vital task: repositioning patients in their beds to avoid wear and tear on sensitive skin. Hospitals around the country are scrambling to put new programs in place to prevent pressure ulcers, commonly known as bedsores, after the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced last month that as of October 2008, it will no longer reimburse hospitals for treating eight ‘reasonably preventable’ conditions.
In addition to lengthening hospital stays and causing extreme pain and discomfort, pressure ulcers can increase the risk of infection, with nearly 60,000 deaths annually from hospital-acquired pressure ulcers.
In my opinion most pressure ulcers or decubitus ulcers are preventable!