Development of Repositioning Bed for Prevention of Pressure Ulcers in Patients

Abstract— Currently, the pressure ulcers, known as bedsores, are common among bed-bound patients. Bedsores are primarily caused by skin friction. In later stages, the humidity will damage the patient’s skin and makes it swell; this might lead to a skin infection. There are many ways, by which bedsores can be treated or prevented in bed-bound patients for example, changing the patient’s sleeping position every 2 hours, using an air mattress, and repositioning the patient’s posture. Therefore, in this work we designed and developed a device that can help turning the bed-bound patient’s laydown position onto a side position of body. The device is controlled using Arduino board to process the tasks assigned by a caretaker. Body temperature and humidity are monitored and measured by sensors and then notify the caretaker via audible signal. To know how the device functions correctly or not, the performance, quality, and property of device were evaluated by ergonomists, medical doctors, and nurses. As the evaluation result shown, the performance was found to be at average of 4.52, quality for 4.39, and properties for 4.05. All of which are highly ranked in the criteria.

Keywords: Bed-bound Patients, Pressure Ulcers, Arduino