GB2231785A - Nursing bed with sanitary facilities - Google Patents

Abstract

A bed or lateral bed extension, has a hinged head section 5 which can be elevated by actuating means such as a piston/cylinder unit 12 using liquid under pressure, preferably water, to serve as a back rest. The bed has an inset sanitary pan 7 and seat and is connected to the actuating means so that the liquid used to elevate the head section is diverted by valve means to subsequently flush the pan. The outflow from the pan is either connected directly to a soil system, or to a macerator. <IMAGE>

Description

NURSING BED WITH SANITARY FACILITIES This invention relates to nursing beds provided with sanitary facilities.

There are many instances where infirm persons, accident patients, or those undergoing maternity care are incapable of being moved from their beds, or it is inadvisable to do so, to perform bodily functions, and be washed. This has meant that, where possible, bed-pans and like appliances have been used which has involved complete nursing supervision and control, and has not included easy means of washing the patient, and automatic means of disposal of body waste products According to the present invention, such a nursing bed comprises a bed frame, having a sub-frame pivoted thereto to provide a head section which can be raised from the horizontal pos;;tion towards the vertical, a sanitary pan appropriately located in and extending beneath the main body section of said bed, and actuating means for raising the head section which are operated by liquid (e.g. water) under pressure and which include valve means operable, when the head section is lowered, to divert the liquid used to raise the head section into the pan for flushing same.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig 1 is a siae elevation of the bed, omits'nag the water and soil connections for the sake of clarity, in the semi elevated position, and Fig 2 is a plan view showing the approximate shape and location of the pan. Refering to Fig 1 the nursing bed comprises a main frame 1, fabricated from rectangular steel tube, having four legs 2, adjustable for height, the frame supporting, via plywood decks a split mattress 3 providing a main body section 4 and head section 5. The mattress on the body section 4 has a suitably shaped cut out to form an opening for a w.c. pan 7 which is set into the plywood deck laid or the frame 1.The pan has an elongated section as shown and a suitably shaped seat 8 is provided with a locating skirt that is of such a size that it will slide down the sides of the pan when depressed into the mattress. The outlet 9 from the pan is, where possible, connected directly to a soil system, or otherwise a macerator 10, as shown, may be used.

The sub-frame 6 is pivotally connected to the piston 11 of a piston/ cylinder unit 12, which is in turn pivotally mounted on a support frame 13 beneath the main frame 1. The unit 12 is connected to a source of water under pressure.

To operate the bed the occupant of the bed or the nursing assistant pushes a lever 14 in a forward direction, that is towards the foot of the bed.

This action opens a valve controlling the inflow of water to the cylinder unit 12; (alternatively this unit may be an inflatable bag or an expanding bellows) which in turn raises the head section 5 of the bed.

The valve may be closed when the desired angle is achieved or will be closed automatically by a mechanism under the bed when a preset angle is reached. After use of the pan 7 the lever 14 is moved rearwardly, i.e. in the direction of the head of the bed, which opens a valve connecting the cylinder unit 12 and the w.c. pan flushing inlet. As the occupant of the bed is returned to a lying position by his or her own weight, spring assisted if necessary, water is expelled from the cylinder unit 12, resulting in a flushing action in the pan 7. The valve is automatically closed by a mechanism under the bed just before the head of the bed reaches a horizontal position to provide a cushioning action for the last few degrees of movement. If desired a water spray is fitted within the sanitary pan for washing purposes. Also the sanitary pan can be fitted with warm air drying facilities.

The bed can be of normal width for single occupation. Alternatively, it can be relatively narrow to be moved alongside an existing bed to be used as an ancillary facility.

Claims (7)

1A nursing bed comprising a bed frame, having a sub-frame pivoted thereto to provide a head section which can be raised from the horizontal towards the vertical, a sanitary pan appropriately located in and extending beneath the main body section of said bed, and actuating means for raising the head section which are operated by liquid (e.g. water) under pressure and which include valve means operable, when the head section is lowered, to divert the liquid used to raise the head section into the pan for flushing same.

2 A nursing bed as claimed in Claim 1 which has a two section mattress the mattress for the body section having a cut out to provide access to the pan and a cover if required for when the sanitary pan is not in use.

3 A nursing bed as claimed in Claims 1 and 2 wherein the control for the head section is positioned so that is can be operated by an occupant when lying or sitting up on the bed. The control, and wherein means are associated with said control automatically overiding manual control as appropiate.

4 A nursing bed as claimed in Claims 1, 2 and 3, wherein the sanitary pan is connected to a macerator for situations where direct connections to mains soil with llOmm pipe is not possible.

5 A nursing bed as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein a water spray is fitted within the sanitary pan for washing purposes.

6 A nursing bed as claimed in any preceding claim, where in the sanitary pan is fitted with drying facilities.

7 A nursing bed as claimed in any preceding claim, which may be narrow enough to form an addition to an existing bed.