What’s important to know about positioning in bed to prevent pressure sores? - Mary Zeigler, MS

The patient needs to be repositioned on regular intervals, whether it’s on their side every two hours, and then on their back every two hours, and then back again on their side for two hours.  This has to be established, and this is done in the rehab setting.  The patient needs to have special pillow placement, so that there is not one part of the body lying on another part of the body, or placing any pressure.  For example, in the side-lie position, you’d want to place a rolled pillow behind their back to help them maintain that side position, so they don’t fall back on their back.  And you’d want to place pillows in between their knees as they’re crossed, so there’s no pressure in between the legs.   You may even want to put pillows underneath the feet to off-load the heels, so that they’re somewhat suspended in the air by the pillow placement.  It’s not that they always have to be turned within that set regime for the rest of their lives, they can build tolerances, perhaps even as long as five to six to seven-hours in one position without any injury to their skin.