In nursing school, we had to write care plans for our patients that included potential as well as actual problems. One problem we didn’t have to think twice about was decubiti (bed sores or pressure sores). The best prevention was always to turn the patient.

Later, when I worked in ICU, turning patients was routine. Generally, our floor attendant came around and turned each patient every two hours. Accomplishing that feat at home is not always so easy, but it’s just as important. However, we need to consider other measures in addition to turning to prevent pressure sores.

When my mother-in-law went on hospice, the medical equipment company delivered a Jeri chair to our house so she could be leaned back to comfortably watch TV. We didn’t realize how firm the waterproof chair was and how much pressure it put on her sacrum. A simple soft pillow under her provided cushioning that allowed better blood flow.

Our loved ones may be bedbound, wheelchair dependent, or simply couch potatoes. Constant pressure on one spot decreases blood flow that can lead to skin breakdown. Once that process starts, it’s hard to stop. Some may even require surgery. Hospice nurses and skin care teams in nursing homes have an arsenal of medications and bandages that help, but sometimes nothing can restore circulation to an area that has lost it.

Here are tips on preventing bedsores, all of which we used at one time or another in caring for my parents and mother-in-law:

• Turn your loved ones who can’t turn themselves every two hours, day and night. When turned to the side, stuff pillows behind their back and put one between their legs. Cushion any other pressure points—particularly heels when they lie on their back.
• Check your loved ones’ back, bottom, heels, and elbows frequently and keep them as clean and dry as possible. Call your doctor or hospice nurse immediately if you see any signs of skin breakdown, including redness that doesn’t go away when the pressure is let off.
• Have your loved one sit on a pillow that relieves pressure even if they aren’t chairbound. If they are wheelchair dependent, they may need specialized pillows such as air-chamber ROHO cushions. These are pricey but can prevent problems in the long run.
• Add egg-crate mattress toppers or alternating pressure mattresses for those who can’t leave their beds.
• Wrap hard chair armrests with sheepskin, tubular foam insulation, or even soft towels.

Believe me, you don’t ever want to deal with trying to heal a pressure sore. Prevention is always the better way. After all, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.
Proverbs 22:3 NIV