GB2100593A - Device for supporting a patient in a sitting position on a hospital bed - Google Patents

Abstract

A device for supporting a patient in a sitting position on a hospital bed, for example, while the patient is being dressed, comprises a wheeled base (1), a column (4) mounted on the base, and a cantilever (6) projecting from the column and carrying at its free end a pair of arcuate padded arms (9) for encircling the patient to hold him or her in the sitting position. The arms can be swung open to be passed round the patient and are locked in the closed position. The cantilever is of telescopic construction and can be adjusted in the vertical direction on the column for locating the arms in a correct position to receive the patient. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Device for supporting a patient in a sitting position on a hospital bed The invention relates to a device for supporting a patient in a sitting position on a hospital bed.

At present, when a patient in a hospital bed has to remain in an upright sitting position for any length of time, for example, to be dressed, and the patient is not strong enough to support himself or herself in this position, the nurse who is tending the patient has eitherto pack pillows around the patient or call for the assistance of another nurse. The invention aims to obviate the need for either of these expedients and to provide a device of simple construction which will hold a sitting patient upright on a hospital or other bed in a firm and comfortable manner and which can be brought into use quickly and easily.

According to the invention there is provided a device for supporting a patient in a sitting position on a hospital bed, comprising a wheeled base, a column mounted on the base, a cantilever connected to the column in a manner which permits adjustment of the cantilever in the vertical direction on the column, and a pair of arcuate arms mounted on the free end of the cantilever for encircling the patient to hold him or her in the sitting position, the arms each being connected at one end to the cantilever and being free at the other end, and one or each of the arms being pivotable on the cantilever between an open position in which the free ends of the arms are spaced from one another sufficiently to allow the arms to be passed round the patient, and a closed position in which the patient, encircled by the arms, cannot pass between the free ends of the arms, means being provided for locking said one or each arm in the closed position.

In use the device is wheeled by the nurse who is tending the patient into a position in which the cantilever extends over the bed on which the patient is lying. The cantilever is then adjusted to bring the arms to the level at which the lower part of the patient's chest will be situated when the patient is in a sitting position on the bed, and the pivotable arm, or each arm if they are both pivotable, is unlocked and swung open. The patient is then raised by the nurse into the sitting position between the open arms, after which the pivotable arm is closed again and locked in the closed position. The patient will now remain safely and comfortably supported in the sitting position by the arms while the nurse dresses or otherwise tends the patient. The device could obviously be of great value in the geriatric ward of a hospital.

Preferably, the cantilever is of telescopic construction so that its length can be adjusted.

The means for locking said one or each arm in the closed position may comprise for said one or each arm two cooperating parts of which one part comprises a disc which is arranged with its axis coinciding with the pivotal axis of the respective arm and which is formed with a groove of V-shaped crosssection around its circumference, and the other part comprises a pawl which is pivoted at one end for movement about an axis parallel to the axis of the disc and which at its free end has a shape complementary to that of the cross-section of said groove and engages in the groove under the influence of a spring, said parts being arranged one on the cantilever and the other on the respective arm for movement therewith about the pivotal axis of the arm relative to the part mounted on the cantilever, and the pawl being arranged to trail freely in the groove during movement of the respective arm in the closing direction and to wedge in the groove so that the two parts are locked against relative movement when a load is applied to the arm in the reverse direction, and means being provided for disengaging the pawl from the groove to permit opening movement of the respective arm.

In one embodiment of the invention the column is of hollow construction and the cantilever extends through a vertical slot in a wall of the column and comprises a part which is slidable in the column in the vertical direction, said part comprising pads of friction material which have sliding contact with a first surface in the column which faces in the direction in which the cantilever projects from the column, and with a second surface in the column which faces in the opposite direction to the first surface, the contact with the second surface being at a higher level in the column than the contact with the first surface.

An embodiment of the device according to the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of the device, Figure 2 is a side view, drawn to a larger scale than Figure 1, of part of the column in section and the adjacent end portion of the cantilever, and Figure 3 is a perspective view, again drawn to a larger scale than Figure 1, of one suitable form of means for locking the pivotable arm, or each arm if both are pivotable.

The device shown in the drawings comprises a rectangular base 1 having two fixed wheels (not shown) at one end, which may be regarded as the front end, and two static feet 2 at the other end. By depressing a foot pedal 3 at the rear of the base 1, two castors (not shown) at the rear end of the base can be brought down to engage the floor and lift the base at its rear end so that the static feet are no longer in contact with the floor and the device becomes mobile. The foot pedal 3 acts on the castors through toggle levers (not shown) which also lock the castors in the lowered position.

Mounted on the base 1 adjacent the rear end thereof is a column 4 of hollow construction. Near the top of the column, on the rear side, are two handles 5 to facilitate steering and manoeuvring the device. Projecting horizontally from the front of the column is a cantilever 6 of telescopic construction, consisting of an inner tube 7 of square section sliding on nylon strips in an outer tube 8 of similar section. On the outer end, i.e. the forward end, of the inner tube 7 is mounted a pair of padded arcuate arms 9. The cantilever 6 extends through a vertical slot (not shown) in the front wall of the column 4 and at its rear end is slidably connected to the column so that it can be adjusted up and down the column.As shown in Figure 2, this connection is effected by pads 10 of rubber or P.T.F.E., or other friction material, which are mounted on a part 11 of the cantilever that is disposed inside the column, and which have sliding contact with the inner surfaces of the front and rear walls 12 and 13 of the column.

Most of the weight of the cantilever 6 and arms 9 is counterbalanced in any convenient manner, for example, by weights or springs housed in the column 4. Due to the eccentricity of the unbalanced load of the cantilever with respect to the contact between the pads 10 and the front and rear walls of the column 4, and the fact that the contact with the front wall is at a higher level than the contact with the rear wall, the unbalanced load of the cantilever tends to tilt the cantilever about the areas of contact between the pads and the walls of the column so that the part 11 of the cantilever becomes wedged between these walls to lock the cantilever in the position to which it is adjusted on the column.To free the cantilever for adjustment it is only necessary for the person using the device to lift the cantilever and thus release the wedging friction between the pads 10 and the front and rear walls of the column 4.

The arcuate arms 9 are curved in a horizontal plane and are pivotally connected at their rearward ends to the forward end of the inner tube 7 of the cantilever 6 for movement in this plane towards and away from one another between open and closed positions, the arms being free at their forward ends.

The arms are shown in the closed position in Figure 1. They are locked in this position by means which comprise for each arm a locking mechanism of the construction shown in Figure 3. The mechanism shown in Figure 3 is the locking mechanism for the right-hand arm as viewed from the rear of the device. This mechanism comprises a disc 14 formed with a circumferential groove 15 of V-shaped crosssection, and a pivoted pawl 16 which at its free end has a shape complementary to that of the crosssection of the groove 15 and engages in the groove under the influence of a light spring (not shown). The disc 14 is fixed on a spindle 17 which is rigidly connected to the forward end of the inner tube 7 of the cantilever 6 and about which the respective arm 9 rotates when moved between the open and closed positions.The pawl 16 is pivotable about a pin 18 which extends parallel with the spindle 17 and which is mounted in two elongate plates 19 fixed in the respective arm 9 and rotatable about the spindle 17.

When the arm is moved from the open position to the closed position the pawl 16 moves with it in the direction of the arrow A in Figure 3 about the common axis of the spindle 17 and disc 14 and trails freely in the groove 15 in the disc. If a load is applied to the arm in the reverse direction, the free end of the pawl wedges in the groove 15 with the result that the pawl and with it the arm are locked against move ment in this direction. The locking mechanism for the left-hand arm 9 (as viewed from the rear of the device) is identical in construction to the mechanism shown in Figure 3, the two mechanisms being arranged as mirror-images of one another on oppo site sides of a vertical plane containing the longitudinal axis of the cantilever 6.The pawls of the two locking mechanisms can be disengaged from the discs 14 by means of knobs positioned at the rear of the arms 9 and connected to the pawls by any convenient means, such as screw-threaded connections, such that rotation of the knobs causes movement of the pawls about the pins 18. One of the knobs, designated 20, can be seen in Figure 1.

In an alternative arrangement (not shown), the spindle 17 of each locking mechanism, with the associated disc 14 fixed thereto, is rotatably mounted on the forward end of the inner tube 7 of the cantilever 6 and is fixed to the respective arm 9 for rotation therewith. The spindle can conveniently form the pivotal connection between the arm and the cantilever. The plates 19, supporting the pivot pin 18 of the pawl 16, are fixed in the inner tube of the cantilever and carry coaxial bearings which support the spindle 17. With this arrangement, when the respective arm 9 is moved from the open position to the closed position the disc 14 is rotated in a corresponding direction such that the pawl 16 trails freely in the groove 15 in the disc.A load applied to the arm in the reverse direction will cause the free end of the pawl to wedge in the groove 15 and lock the disc 14 to prevent rotation of the arm in this direction. The pawl can again be disengaged from the disc by means of a manually operable knob, mounted in this case on the inner tube of the cantilever.

To use the device, first the foot pedal 3 is depressed to lower the castors at the rear end of the base 1 so that the device is mobile. The device is then wheeled to the relevent bed and manoeuvred into a position in which the base is situated beneath the bed and the cantilever 6 projects over the bed.

The cantilever is then extended by pulling out the inner tube 7, until the arms 9 are positioned above the patient lying on the bed, and the cantilever is adjusted vertically on the column 4to bring the arms 9 to about the level at which the lower part of the patient's chest will be situated when the patient is in a sitting position on the bed. By means of the relevant knob 20, the locking mechanism of the arm which is nearer the patient's head is released and this arm is swung right back into the fully open position. The patient is then raised into a sitting position between the arms - this may require a further manoeuvre of the device on its wheels - and the opened arm is closed to leave the patient encircled by the two arms. Finally, the foot pedal 3 is raised to lower the base 1 at its rear end so that the static feet 2 engage the floor and the device is immobile again. These operations may, if desired, be carried out in a sequence different from that described.

The arms 9 will hold the patient upright in the sitting position and also serve as arm-rests for the patient.

The device can also be used to support a patient sitting on the edge of a bed or standing by the side of a bed.

It is possible to have only one of the arms movable between open and closed positions. This has the disadvantage, however, that the device can be used with ease at only one particular side of a bed, i.e., the side at which the movable arm is nearer the upper part of the patient's body. If the device is positioned at the other side of the bed the movable arm is remote from this part of the patient's body and more manoeuvring of the device will be required after the patient has been raised into the sitting position.

Means are preferably provided for locking the inner tube 7 of the cantilever 6 against return movement in the outer tube 8 when the cantilever has been extended by the required amount. These means may comprise a pawl and ratchet housed within the cantilever and mounted one on the inner tube 7 and the other on the outer tube 8, the pawl being disengageable from outside the cantilever when it is desired to move the inner tube back into the outer tube.

The device is inexpensive to produce since much of it can be fabricated from sheet metal.

Claims (5)

1. A device for supporting a patient in a sitting position on a hospital bed, comprising a wheeled base, a column mounted on the base, a cantilever connected to the column in a manner which permits adjustment of the cantilever in the vertical direction on the column, and a pair of arcuate arms mounted on the free end of the cantilever for encircling the patient to hold him or her in the sitting position, the arms each being connected at one end to the cantilever and being free at the other end, and one or each of the arms being pivotable on the cantilever between an open position in which the free ends of the arms are spaced from one another sufficiently to allow the arms to be passed round the patient, and a closed position in which the patient, encircled by the arms, cannot pass between the free ends of the arms, means being provided for locking said one or each arm in the closed position.

2. A device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the cantilever is of telescopic construction so that its length can be adjusted.

3. A device as claimed in Claim 1 or 2, wherein the means for locking said one or each arm in the closed position comprise for said one or each arm two cooperating parts of which one part comprises a disc which is arranged with its axis coinciding with the pivotal axis of the respective arm and which is formed with a groove of V-shaped cross-section around its circumference, and the other part comprises a pawl which is pivoted at one end for movement about an axis parallel to the axis of the disc and which at its free end has a shape com elementary to that of the cross-section of said groove and engages in the groove under the influence of a spring, said parts being arranged one on the cantilever and the other on the respective arm for movement therewith aboutthe pivotal axis of the arm relative to the part mounted on the cantilever, and the pawl being arranged to trail freely in the groove during movement of the respective arm in the closing direction and to wedge in the groove so that the two parts are locked against relative movement when a load is applied to the arm in the reverse direction, and means being provided for disengaging the pawl from the groove to permit opening movement of the respective arm.

4. A device as claimed in Claim 1,2 or 3, wherein the column is of hollow construction and the cantilever extends through a vertical slot in a wall of the column and comprises a part which is slidable in the column in the vertical direction, said part comprising pads of friction material which have sliding contact with a first surface in the column which faces in the direction in which the cantilever projects from the column, and with a second surface in the clumn which faces in the opposite direction to the first surface, the contact with the second surface being at a higher level in the column than the contact with the first surface.

5. A device for supporting a patient in a sitting position on a hospital bed, the device being substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.