How do I choose a bed and chair alarms?

It can be daunting to choose which product will work for you. Bed alarms and chair alarms come in many shapes and sizes.Starting with the basics, a bed alarm is used when you need to know if your patient is getting up from their bed. Bed/Chair pads should not be folded or they may cease to work properly. If you need a pad and alarm for a chair, you should buy a system designated specifically for chair use.

Bed alarms can have various features, but they all have the same purpose, to alert you to the fact that your patient is getting up onto their feet. To silence a bed alarm, all units feature either a reset button or an on/off switch.  Regarding bed alarm systems, a standard bed sensor pad is connected via a cord, similar to a telephone cord, to the bed alarm. (Some systems are cordless and use radio frequency technology to communicate with one another. We carry both styles.) The pad is placed in the bed under the fitted sheet, and the bed alarm is hung onto the bed, or placed on the floor just tucked under the bed slightly, or on a bedside table. Placement really depends on whether your patient will try to interfere with the bed alarm. For this type of patient, a cordless system is probably a better choice.

Place the bed pad horizontally under the fitted sheet in a bed, under the patient’s upper back area, so that when they start to get up, the alarm will sound with the caregiver.Alarm will emit a repeated chime tone when alert is activated.To silence the alert, simply turn off the alarm or us the optional reset button.While in chime/alert mode, if the patient sits back on the pad, the system will reset itself.

Regarding chair alarm systems, the chair sensor pad connects to the alarm via a similar telephone style cord. (Again, cordless chair alarm systems are available.) The pad is placed toward the back of the seat area of the desired chair. A light coverlet of some type can be placed on top of the pad if desired. Note that we do not recommend using these pads on top of or under pressure relief cushions. These can interfere with the pad working properly. The pad will activate the chair alarm when the patient rises up off it.
Our sensor pads are made of a foam material that has been wrapped in vinyl, heat sealed to resist incontinence issues. However, the area of our pads where the cord exits, (or the transmitter area of our cordless pads), are vulnerable to fluid intake. Those areas should be routed away from possible urine exposure. Incontinence pads can be used on top of our sensor pads to this end. Also, please avoid submerging your pad in any type of liquid, even to clean. Simply wipe with disinfecting wipes.

Our pads with 45/90 day warranties are made with Carbon Tracings and pads with 1-year warranty have Silver linings which are more durable.

• 10x30 pad is good for a patient weighing 120 lbs. or more, being used on a firm mattress
• 20x30 pad is good for a patient weighing less than 120 lbs.Also recommended for any weight patient when using with a hospital bed, memory foam, gel, air or Tempur-Pedic mattress