Next-Gen Bed Design: Going Further Than Operational Throughput

With the goal of delivering high-quality medical care in a timely manner, hospitals and care facilities constantly seek ways to optimize operational efficiency without compromising patient care. The VersaTech Bariatric Bed offers a range of features that takes patients from admission to discharge, without sacrificing the patient experience.

Taking the Wheel on Efficiency

Most would agree that having assistance moving bariatric patients makes it easier for nurses and other caregivers to do their jobs well. While hospital bed drive systems aren’t new, Rotec’s VersaDrive system benefits staff experience in three key ways:

1. Sensing forward and backward movement: By sensing initial forward or backward movement, this feature makes it easier for caregivers to move the bed in the intended direction without straining their backs.
2. Battery stamina: Another operational advantage, the bed’s drive system can hold power up to five miles on a single charge, ensuring it’s always ready for use. With around 30-35% of a hospital’s daily patient flow classified as obese, having these beds ready to go gets patients in and out faster.¹
3. Lightweight frame: Despite supporting 1,100 lb, the highest weight capacity on the market, VersaTech Bariatric bed’s lightweight frame and intuitive drive system eases physical strain on caregivers and promotes patient handling safety, reducing the likelihood of nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants sustaining injuries.² 

Patient Comfort Unlocks Hidden Operational Wins

In a busy hospital setting, every inconvenience impacts efficiency, and this includes anything that might impede patient comfort and create disruption. The following features play a dual role in ensuring patient comfort and promoting efficiency:

• Ultra-low bed height: Bringing a bed to a lower height can allow patients with limited mobility to get out of bed more safely by bringing their feet closer to the ground, recover faster through the added mobility that leaving bed provides, and avoid disruptive and costly injuries. VersaTech Bariatric beds can be adjusted to as low as eight inches from the ground.
• Deck width and length: VersaTech Bariatric beds offer the most variety in width and length customization compared to competitors, making it a bed solution suitable across a range of patient comfort needs and scenarios.

While on the surface these features prioritize patient comfort, they actually simplify patient care by empowering nurses to assist patients more efficiently.³

Intuitive Design for Improved Safety

The most common, preventable adverse events reported in hospitals, patient falls, cost U.S. hospitals $17 billion annually in the form of lawsuits and unreimbursed claims. Falls may also lead to longer hospital stays. In fact, each extra day of stay costs $3,000 on average and may not be reimbursable.⁴

With this in mind, VersaTech’s design prioritizes safety through simple, intuitive design features such as:

• Exit notifications: Three-zone bed exit detection system, connected to nurse call with both visual and sound notification, enhances patient safety by alerting the nurse if a patient is trying to leave the bed and might need assistance.
• Footboard-based VersaDrive system: Integrated into the footboard, the VersaDrive system allows for constant and direct visual contact with the patient – after all, easy communication promotes efficiency, and safety.

Moreover, the bed’s intuitive design means that caregivers can quickly master the bed's functions without extensive training, saving valuable time during shift changes and allowing staff to focus more on patient care. If a question or issue does arise, a QR code is conveniently located on the footboard, giving staff immediate access to several one- to two-minute video tutorials explaining each function of the bed, such as how to reset the scale or adjust the bed for different patient sizes. 

Rolling Ahead

Healthcare facilities will continue to face the thorny challenge of providing high-quality care with strained costs and resources. VersaTech Bariatric beds demonstrate how, when thoughtfully designed, hospital equipment can save costs and optimize resource allocation without sacrificing the patient experience. With an intuitive VersaDrive system, attention to patient comfort, and simple safety features, Rotec’s VersaTech beds support better outcomes for patients and enhanced operations for providers.

Sources:

1. Hossain, M. A., Amin, A., Paul, A., Qaisar, H., Akula, M., Amirpour, A., Gor, S., Giglio, S., Cheng, J., Mathew, R., Vachharajani, T., Bakr, M., & Asif, A. (2018). Recognizing Obesity in Adult Hospitalized Patients: A Retrospective Cohort Study Assessing Rates of Documentation and Prevalence of Obesity. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 7(8). https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm7080203
2. Gallagher, S. (2015). A Practical Guide to Bariatric Safe Patient Handling and Mobility: Improving Safety and Quality for the Patient of Size. United States: Visioning Publishers.
3. VersaTech Bariatric Bed Empowers Nurses to Perform at Peak Efficiency. (2024, December 18). Rotec. https://rotecbeds.com/en/news/versatech-bariatric-bed-empowers-nurses-to-perform-at-peak-efficiency
4. Hospital Adjusted Expenses per Inpatient Day | KFF. (2024, February 1). KFF. https://www.kff.org/health-costs/state-indicator/expenses-per-inpatient-day/?currentTimeframe=0&sortModel=%7B%22colId%22:%22Location%22,%22sort%22:%22asc%22%7D