Toto turning system helps Diane prevent pressure injuries
Anyone who spends the majority of their day lying in bed is at high risk of developing painful pressure injuries.
Diane Logan of Gisborne is in that exact situation after suffering a spinal stroke which left her paralysed from the waist down. The 75 year-old also suffered damage to her vocal chords and now spends around 14 hours a day in bed.
Her husband, John, helps care for her and the couple recently had a Toto automated turning lateral system installed which is proving very effective at preventing pressure injuries from occurring.
The inflatable system features a ladder formation down each side of the mattress, with a flat area in the middle. It slides underneath Di’s Metzeler Airline Visco Tube mattress and as it gently inflates, it lifts up one side of the mattress at a time throughout the night.
“You can programme it but the default setting is two hours in each position,” John explains. “In between each side, it leaves you lying flat in the middle for a period of time before the other side then inflates. So through the night Di gets at least one turn lying on each side and then maybe one or two extra depending on how long she’s in bed for.”
The Toto system was recommended by Di’s OT because she’s a long-term patient lying on her back and pressure injuries are a potential problem. “This is a way of being proactive and helping avoid them from developing in the first place,” John says.
While Di hasn’t had any major skin issues to date, there has been two occasions where her carers have noticed early warning signs and had to act fast to prevent a pressure injury from developing.
“We haven’t had any skin issues since she’s been sleeping on the Toto turning system. It’s very quiet and it’s obviously doing its job so we’re very pleased with it.”
Another unexpected benefit is that John is now getting a much better night’s sleep also. “Previously I needed to wake several times during the night to manually turn Di on her side. But now I am enjoying an undisturbed full night’s sleep.”
“Previously I needed to wake several times during the night to manually turn Di on her side. But now I am enjoying an undisturbed full night’s sleep.”
If you would like to find out more about our our pressure care solutions, please get in touch with our team on 0800 656 527 or email [email protected]