My dad has been in hospital since New Year's Day, he has been diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, he is not able to breath without oxygen and has no strength in his legs so is unable to walk, he has lost 2 stone in weight since being in hospital , he has mouth ulcers so finds it difficult to eat, he is 83 years old , he is starting g to develop bed sores , he was on an air bed at first which helps prevent bedsores but they moved him from HDU to a respiratory ward and is in a "normal" bed , he has been able to sit for a couple of hours on a chair but it isn't very comfortable does anyone have any ideas if I can buy something to make him more comfortable? It is so hard to see my dad like this and if anyone has gone through this maybe you can give me some advise to make him comfortable. Thank you in advance
Pulmonary fibrosis: My dad has been in... - Lung Conditions C...
Pulmonary fibrosis
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I am so very sorry to read how your dad is, my dad had Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis. Thankfully he never had any bed sores but his nurse did say that there were special cushions you could buy for around £50 that would help prevent them or at least make you more comfortable to sit on. As for the bed in hospital, as far as I am aware he should be on special bed even on the ward to help with bed sores, maybe speak to someone in authority about it and say it is not acceptable.
Agree you dad should have an air bed. Not sure if this will be any good to you essentialaids.com/comfort/p...
Hope things improve soon
Love C xxx
You and your dad should not be having to put up with this! The prevention of bed sores is an ESSENTIAL part of good nursing. You need to be very assertive (easy for me to say I know) and tell the nurses/sister/consultant that he needs to be on a Ripple mattress in order to prevent bed sores.
If all else fails you may want to contact one of the members looking into the NHS constitution listed on here: dh.gov.uk/health/2013/01/gr...
Everyone is entitled to good NHS care and if they are not receiving it we need to complain to the people who can do something about it.
I really hope your dad gets the treatment he deserves very soon.
XXX
my husband has ipf, the nurses have provided us with an air bed for home and a gel cushion for the chair, they are very keen always to check for sores, ( he has none ) and as mapal has said this is an essential part of nursing. Do complain until you get the help you so dearly need.
Ditto all the above; my husband has IPF, he has been given a cushion, but I noticed he is looking red around the base of his spine so will be sorting out one of those cushions with a cut out bit. He can still walk a little so is not always seated, but I do worry about pressure sores and check thoroughly every day, and to his annoyance insist on moisturising and massaging the danger areas. I would consider myself to have failed if he developed a sore and I hadn't noticed.It really is just basic nursing !!! Our local mobility shop has the cushions for about £30, we shall visit and investigate in the next few days. Good luck.
Gill
How I feel for your Dad, you should be able to speak to the nurses re., having a Ripple bed. also there are lots of creams to help with avoiding bed sores. If he can just stand up up even for a few seconds that also helps,also a Gel cushion. I fully understand how you are both feeling, My darling husband died last September from this horrible disease, He had it for just over 5 years but was'nt really poorly until the last 6 weeks of his life. Speak to everyone you can ie' Oxygen nurses, his consultant, also the Hospice nurses are wonderful. You are not alone, my thoughts are with you. Bulpit
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