Thread on giving baths got me thinking, and was wondering if nurses still make beds with "hospital" corners anymore. Also is learning the three basic types of beds part of formal nursing education anymore?
I'll leave aside the mandate that pillow slip opening must face away from the door for now. *LOL*
Merely require information, as am often gobsmacked at what passes for a bed these days in hospital, and often hear "I don't have time for that".
it cant be patchouli....its too laughable....maybe RN's could make beds back when the patient ratio was 3/1 instead of 12 or 13/1
Three to one? Where and when was that the common nurse to pt ratio?
Nurses have had a dozen or more pts to care for and bedmaking (along with AM/PM care) got done.
If you were lucky there were NAs or some sort of UAP assistance, but if not you got on with things as best one could. Supply of linens on a trolley and starting at the head of a ward, one side of a floor or whatever, the AM ritual was almost the same at every hospital/nursing home soon as AM shift report was over.
Now what would have been a luxury is *two* persons to make each bed (nurse and nurse or nurse and UAP, or even two UAPs).
Should also like to point out that bed making is also an excellent time (aside from bathing), to make some assessments as to a patient's skin condition especially for decubitus. If the later is even in the telltale signs of starting intervention can be started, situation noted and watched.
Really is a shame so many have a low opinion of the "pillow plumping" aspects of what were once called the "nursing arts".
the pillow case facing away from the door is a VERY old thing. It was to prevent sand and dust getting into the pillow when wards had verandas that were opened during the day to let fresh air in. I still do it and do proper bed making when the pt is out of the bed. If they are in it they get their top bed sheet pulled out and doubled over the end.
Really? I remember our instructors telling us that the pillow case thing came from an old superstition/old wives tale, something about evil spirits getting in, etc.... But back to original topic, I don't get the chance to do it that often on nights, but when I was a tech, we always made our beds the "old school" way. :)
Specializes in MED SURG/GERIATRIC ADMIN/ CORRECTIONS.
nursing ratios depend on the unit... SNF usually have at least 30...while ICU is mosty 1/1 or 1/2....
i ALWAYS do complete skin assessments on ALL my patients...as should everyone else lol
im not gonna sit in my bed and type a lie...i dont have time to make beds...when you have 13 patients under your care, are charging the floor, being night pharmacy to the rest of the hospital, and giving blood....nope im not gonna fib and tell you ive mitered bed corners and made beds...i will however tell you...i do make sure it gets done (okay well maybe not the mitering)...but cleanliness is next to godliness and i wont have one of my patients in a nasty bed unless they utterly refuse to have it changed (which much to my chagrin has happened)
where i work, we team nurse...i can have up to 16 patients (not counting the other RN and her patients im accountable for)--with an lpn, and a cna to help me.......well on the med surg floor anyway
the lpn gives PO meds and does chart checks, cna does toileting, bed changing, vitals, etc.
To the poster, you must be really old school. Note, I said "old school", not old or you don't work on a busy floor if you're so worried about the formality of a bed. Yes, I do make beds with hospital corners, but no, I don't care how perfect other beds look as long as they don't look like someone slept in it before a new admission comes. With juggling numerous critical patients on my floor, I really have better things to worry about!
Specializes in Med Office, Home Health, School Nurse.
I'm a school nurse, so no hospital bed making here...I did it during clinicals because one of my instructors was "old school" and you better believe those corners had to be right and tidy haha!! Honestly, I rarely make my bed at home...that sounds horrible doesn't it! I just don't see the point, when we are gonna climb right back in it! LOL I do pull the covers up and make them tidy most of the time...
The line about the pillow having to face away from the door reminded me of something...I have this "quirk" where the tag side of the pillow has to go into the pillowcase first so that the tag isn't sticking out AND on our bed at home, the opening of our pillowcases have to face each other toward the middle of the bed...odd, huh? :-)
We had fitted sheets, but I mitered the top sheet and blanket if used, always turned my pillows to face in and didn't shake linen or the pillow to put a new case on it.
Funny though, last time a made a bed on a unit the nurse I was working with stared at the bed and shook her head. She had recently graduated and this was her first RN job. She told me that in school her instructors told them that beds were made this way, but not to worry about it or learn how to do it because nurses are too busy for things like that. So in reality she'd never seen a nurse make a bed this way.
I don't disagree that these things are a bit outdated, but I was surprised that nursing schools weren't even teaching it. Personally, I like the way a well made bed looks and do it at home, but I never had time to worry about fixing beds I didn't make. I don't think mitering corners or turning pillow cases takes extra time, but since it's the way I've always done it I can do it fast.
I learned hospital corners in school less than 2 years agp...still do them if the bed I'm making doesn't use fitted sheets.
What's the deal with the pillow slip opening facing away from the door?
Learned to not put the open side of the pillowcase facing the door in a Catholic hospital by a sister. (Sr. Margaret, if I remember correctly!) Sister felt it didn't look as "neat and tidy" when someone walks by in the hall and looks in the room. I still do it that way at home, too. Old habits take a slow death in some circumstances!
I learned 'proper' bed making in school, with hospital corners, draw sheets and all. I don't use any of it though. I'm in the NICU, and isolette blanket changes are a little different. It would have been useful if I had been taught to make nests in school....
kristieRNsn2bFNP
37 Posts
it cant be patchouli....its too laughable....maybe RN's could make beds back when the patient ratio was 3/1 instead of 12 or 13/1