Federal officials fined a Kansas City nursing home $10,000 in the November death of a resident whose neck became pinned between a bed rail and mattress, reported The Kansas City (KS) Star. The facility violated two federal regulations, a state regulation, and a state law in its handling of the Alzheimer’s resident, according to an investigation. In response to the state’s report, the nursing home removed side rails from beds with residents who did not require them, developed side rails in-service training, created an emergency notification list for suspicious deaths, and wrote new policies for frequent monitoring of residents.
The danger of bed rails has been known by the industry since the 1980’s. Read what the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has to say about reducing the dangers of bed rails here.