Getting ready to move our mother downstairs...

[totallyconfused]

Really sad,there's something very final about it.The last night upstairs will hit us hard I think.Upstairs, my room was on one side, my sister on the other so we always were close, heard her during night.

We have been given a hospital bed.We will probably take turns sleeping on couch for a while but does anyone have any ideas so that we would hear her if we sleep upstairs?Someone mentioned a sensor mat with a bell?Anybody here use that?

any help appreciated

 

[RosettaT]

How about a baby alarm?
I bought a camera, if I hear my husband or wake in the night I can check on him on my tablet without getting out of bed. I believe some baby alarms have cameras these days. The mat would be a good option if she is liable to get out of bed by herself without making a noise.

 

[Izzy]

I used an alarm mat for husband. We still slept in the same room though so my situation was different. The alarm was loud and I think I would have heard it had I been downstairs. We got our mat through the Occupational Therapy service.

 

[Sirena]

Is your mother able to get out of bed on her own (or liable to try to do so?) You can get pressure mats with 'nurse call' systems, but if you got a baby alarm and a simple pressure mat I guess the baby alarm would let you hear an alert from the pressure mat. You can either put a pressure mat on the floor next to the bed which will alert when her feet touch it, or put one on the bed which will alert if she leaves the bed. My mother now has the latter (in a CH).

 

[Bod]

Would a stair lift help?

Bod

 

[totallyconfused]

Is your mother able to get out of bed on her own (or liable to try to do so?) You can get pressure mats with 'nurse call' systems, but if you got a baby alarm and a simple pressure mat I guess the baby alarm would let you hear an alert from the pressure mat. You can either put a pressure mat on the floor next to the bed which will alert when her feet touch it, or put one on the bed which will alert if she leaves the bed. My mother now has the latter (in a CH).

She can get out of bed on her own. the latter sounds good option. perhaps she would trip on the mat on the floor getting out of bed?maybe not

Must look in to it.

 

[totallyconfused]

Would a stair lift help?

Bod

Decided against it. Think our mother would be really scared using one. its a shame cos we had a new bathroom put in upstairs.

The grant process takes too long and we were thniking its a huge expense, especially for someone in the late stages whose movement is getting poorer and more frail looking.Didnt thnik it would be used for long.

 

[Ohso]

I have just moved my mum into my home and l dont envisage her making it down the stairs again so l have made her room dual use. I am lucky enough to have a room large enough for a singles bed, drawers etc and also two comfy chairs and a small coffee table. For us this makes sense as the bathroom is upstairs and l am on hand inthe night if she needs help in the toilet.
I was wondering would it be possible to do this for your mum, or if space is tight what about moving you or your sister downstairs and converting a bedroom into a sitting room.
It works well in my house as carers etc sit with mum and l sit with her in the evenings till she is ready to get into bed.
I work from home so having mum downstairs wasnt really viable as three of us work here and as mum gets worse it might have been more difficult downstairs

 

[Sirena]

She can get out of bed on her own. the latter sounds good option. perhaps she would trip on the mat on the floor getting out of bed?maybe not

Must look in to it.

To begin with my mother's pressure mat was on the floor by the bed, but it was subsequently moved onto the bed itself - and I suspect you are right about the reason, she had had a couple of falls and the mat could be a potential trip hazard. So now it alerts as soon as she relieves the pressure on it when she starts getting out of bed.

They also use pressure mats on the chairs for some residents if they are at high risk at falls, so a carer is alerted if they are not within immediate eyesight.

 

[canary]

Mum used to adroitly bypass the pressure mat that they used to use in her care home, so they used an infra red alert that went off when mum broke the beam. The one they used was expensive, but Ive seen others on the market that could be used