Comfort and care
The care of patients, especially if they are bedridden, requires great psychological and physical effort.
- The first step is to organize the space to reduce your physical efforts when taking care of the patient.
- If the person for whom you are caring can go to the toilet by himself, the space must be arranged in such a way that access to the bathroom is easy.
- You could also place a commode next to the bed.
- In case the patient is bedridden, make sure that you can access the bed easily.
- Use special skincare cosmetics and hygiene products with a sensitive design.
- Use cleansing products like specially-designed wet wipes, so that you can cleanse the skin fast, if needed, without the patient and the bed getting wet.
- Opt for disposable hygiene products, such as gloves – towels, bedpads, bibs. They are practical and can be thrown away after each use.
- If your finances can stretch that far, invest in special care equipment. You can also rent such equipment from medical supplies shops. In such shops you can find crutches, wheelchairs, lifts, hospital beds or non-slip rugs.
- Use soft bedding and, when choosing the patient’s clothes, opt for clothing made with natural materials that will not irritate his/her skin. The clothing should not be too warm, so that the patient sweats less, allowing skin to breathe.
- The same goes for incontinence products, which must be specially designed to allow skin to breathe freely.