title: An audit of bedrail use and implications for practice.
abstract: Bedrails are used extensively in both the hospital and community care settings to protect vulnerable people from falling out of bed. However, there is evidence of indiscriminate bedrail use and some inadvertent use of bedrails as a form of restraint, which in turn may compromise patient safety, dignity and autonomy. This article describes a night-time bedrail audit undertaken in one integrated NHS trust to determine the numbers and types of bedrails in use, the patient demographic, locations where bedrails were used and, importantly, why staff decided to use them. The information collected was used to inform local policy development and improve practice. The implications of the audit findings for practice are discussed, and a new decision aid for the use of bedrails is presented.
authors.affiliation: Cardiff andVale NHS Trust, Cardiff, UK.
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Shanahan
authors.forename: Alison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Evans
mesh_terms: D001513:Beds; D003657:Decision Making; D008485:Medical Audit; D009729:Nursing; D017751:Safety Management; D013222:State Medicine; D006113:United Kingdom