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Choosing the Right Pressure Care Solution: Static Mattresses

Choosing the Right Pressure Care Solution: Static Mattresses

Pressure ulcers, often known as bedsores, remain a significant concern for individuals with limited mobility or those who spend extended periods in bed. These painful wounds develop when prolonged pressure on the skin restricts blood flow, leading to tissue damage. Selecting the correct pressure care solution is crucial for both preventing new ulcers and managing existing ones. While active mattresses offer dynamic support, static mattresses play a vital role in a comprehensive pressure care strategy.

What is a Static Mattress?

A static mattress is a non-powered pressure redistribution mattress designed to conform to the user’s body shape. Unlike active mattresses that use alternating air cells, static mattresses rely on advanced foam technologies and construction to achieve pressure relief. They work by:

  • Immersion: Allowing the body to sink into the mattress, increasing the contact area.
  • Envelopment: Conforming closely to the body’s contours, distributing pressure more evenly.

This combination helps to reduce peak pressure points, improve blood flow, and minimise shear and friction forces, all of which are critical in preventing tissue damage.

Key Considerations When Choosing a Static Mattress:

Selecting the right static mattress involves a careful assessment of several factors to ensure optimal comfort and clinical effectiveness:

  • Risk Level: The user’s risk level for developing pressure ulcers is paramount. This is typically assessed using a validated risk assessment tool, such as the Waterlow or Braden scale. Static mattresses are generally suitable for individuals at low to very high risk, depending on their specific design and materials.
  • User Needs: Consider the individual’s weight, height, mobility, and any existing medical conditions. A mattress must be able to support the user’s weight effectively without bottoming out.

Mattress Features:

  • Material Composition: Look for high-quality foams (e.g., viscoelastic, high-resilience) that offer excellent pressure redistribution properties.
  • Zoning: Some mattresses feature different foam densities or cuts in specific areas to provide targeted pressure relief for vulnerable body parts.
  • Cover Properties: A multi-stretch, vapour-permeable, and water-resistant cover is essential for skin integrity, hygiene, and durability.
  • Stability: Ensure the mattress provides good stability for patient transfers and repositioning.
  • Profiling Compatibility: The mattress must be compatible with profiling beds to ensure it articulates correctly without compromising its pressure-relieving properties.

Recommended Static Mattresses from Harvest:

Harvest offers a range of high-quality static mattresses, each designed to meet diverse pressure care needs and provide exceptional comfort:

Visco MultiZone Mattress: Our enhanced static mattress, the Visco MultiZone, features specialist foam “zones” strategically positioned across key areas of the mattress. This varying firmness allows for greater immersion and envelopment around the most vulnerable parts of the body, leading to superior pressure redistribution. It provides additional support where needed most, often reducing the need for dynamic mattresses. Proudly made in the UK and assembled by Harvest, it’s lighter than previous models and includes complete corners to minimise entrapment risks.

Discover the Visco MultiZone Mattress here

Prime Comfort Plus Static Mattress: The Prime Comfort Plus is an excellent static mattress known for providing great patient comfort and excellent pressure redistribution. Its clever side wall construction encases the foam, enhancing stability for the patient and assisting in transfers. A castellated foam top allows excess heat to escape, preventing overheating. Keyhole slots in the high-density base aid profiling, ensuring seamless integration with profiling beds.

Explore the Prime Comfort Plus Static Mattress here

Community Plus Static Mattress: The Community Plus Static Mattress is a highly versatile and cost-effective solution, suitable for patients at medium to high risk of developing pressure ulcers. Built with high-resilience CMHR foam, it offers excellent pressure distribution and comfort. Supplied with a four-way stretch, vapour-permeable, water-resistant PU cover, it’s designed for durability and easy cleaning. Its ability to be turned extends its service life, providing long-term value.

Learn more about the Community Plus Static Mattress here

Why Choose Harvest?

When you choose Harvest, you’re partnering with a provider committed to excellence in pressure care:

  • Reliable and Durable Products: Our mattresses are built to last, providing consistent performance and peace of mind.
  • Comprehensive Warranty: All our static mattresses come with a robust warranty for added reassurance.
  • Cost-Effective Solutions: We offer a range of pressure care solutions designed to fit various budgets without compromising on quality.
  • Servicing and Repair: Our dedicated service team provides prompt and reliable support, ensuring your mattresses remain in optimal condition.
  • Mattress Management Programme: Our comprehensive programme offers a cost-effective and sustainable alternative to mattress replacement, with repair, cleaning, and decontamination services.
  • Training and Support: We provide comprehensive training and support to ensure your staff can effectively use and maintain our pressure care solutions.

Choosing the right static mattress is a critical decision for a user’s well-being and overall care quality. Contact Harvest today to discuss your pressure care needs and find the best solution for your users.

Harvest Healthcare Announces Extended Warranty on Woburn & Cadence Bed Ranges

Harvest Healthcare is delighted to announce an extended warranty on its popular Woburn and Cadence ranges of beds. This enhancement underscores the company’s commitment to providing reliable, high-quality solutions and offering customers even greater peace of mind.

The extended warranty now includes a 7-year guarantee on bed frames and a 5-year guarantee on woodwork and electrical components for both the established Woburn range and the premium Cadence line. This extension is effective from the original date of purchase, reinforcing Harvest Healthcare’s confidence in the durability and performance of their products.

The Woburn range has long been a trusted choice for clinical and operational teams nationwide, known for its reliability, ease of use, and robust design. Similarly, the Cadence bed range caters to more discerning environments, blending sophisticated aesthetics with exceptional functionality. This extended warranty reflects the consistent feedback from healthcare partners regarding the minimal service issues and high durability of both bed ranges.

What This Means for Customers:

  • Enhanced Peace of Mind: Reduce potential downtime and minimise disruptions to essential patient care.
  • Long-Term Value: Benefit from the proven durability of Harvest Healthcare beds, contributing to a lower total cost of ownership.
  • Reinforced Trust: This extended warranty backs years of reliable, real-world performance and the company’s dedication to its partnerships within the healthcare sector.

“We are incredibly proud of the quality and reliability of our Woburn and Cadence bed ranges,” said James Hunt, Senior Marketing & Communications Executive. “This extended warranty is a direct reflection of the confidence we have in our products and our ongoing commitment to supporting our customers with dependable solutions.”

Customers seeking further information about the extended warranty or the Woburn and Cadence bed ranges are encouraged to visit the Harvest Healthcare website or contact the sales team directly.

Harvest Healthcare hosts local MP Sarah Champion to highlight critical sector challenges

Sarah Champion MP has lent her support to the local health and social care sector following a visit to Rotherham-based medical equipment supplier, Harvest Healthcare. The visit provided an opportunity to highlight the urgent pressures facing suppliers of critical medical equipment amid a national crisis in community care funding and delivery.

The visit took place at Harvest’s headquarters, where the Labour MP for Rotherham was given an in-depth tour of the supplier and manufacturer’s premises, including an overview of its range of medical beds, pressure care products and industry-leading decontamination facilities for active mattresses. During the visit, Harvest emphasised the increasing strain faced by suppliers and local authorities alike due to a lack of adequate government funding.

Sarah Champion MP, a longstanding advocate for health and social care services, was briefed on the growing crisis in Community Equipment Services (CES) — services that sit at the heart of safe hospital discharge and care at home, yet remain significantly under-resourced. The discussion covered the far-reaching impact of budget constraints on local authorities and the knock-on effects on the sustainability of vital equipment supply chains.

Harvest also highlighted how broader cost pressures, including rising Employer National Insurance Contributions and the increase to the National Living Wage, have exacerbated the situation for the sector. These financial strains have resulted in both suppliers and customers freezing recruitment, ultimately leading to a direct impact on timely patient care and increased pressures on the NHS.

Sarah Champion MP, MP for Rotherham, said:

“The work being done by Harvest and the wider community equipment sector is absolutely vital for the health and wellbeing of some of our most vulnerable residents. I was deeply concerned to hear just how close to breaking point many community services are due to funding pressures and rising costs. These issues urgently need national attention if we are to deliver safe, timely, and dignified care in people’s homes.”

Mike Burns, Managing Director of Harvest Healthcare, said:

“We are proud to support Long term Care facilities, the NHS and local community services through innovative, durable, and cost-effective equipment. But we’re at a critical juncture where insufficient investment and funding for local authority and community equipment services is putting quality patient care at risk. This impacts all of us and our families. It’s incredibly reassuring to see Sarah Champion take the time to hear directly from our sector, and we hope today’s visit will help motivate wider action to safeguard community care services.”

As a member of the British Healthcare Trades Association (BHTA), Harvest Healthcare are signed up to the association’s code of practice setting best practice and responsibility standards for medical equipment and service providers. The BHTA are currently supporting their members involved in community care services – such as Harvest – by raising attention to the so-called ‘CES crisis’ resulting in shortages in vital medical equipment in community care settings and exacerbating hospital discharge delays. The BHTA are calling for urgent support for this vital cornerstone of the wider social care system, that supports over 4 million patients annually at no additional cost to the NHS.

David Stockdale, Chief Executive Officer of the British Healthcare Trades Association, said:

“Our members operating in this sector are under more strain than ever before, and this is having a direct impact on the quality of care people receive. Visits like this are crucial. They allow MPs to hear directly from those keeping the system going despite huge pressures. The concerns raised today highlight currently extreme pressures on the wider industry, caused by a concoction of regulatory and financial changes and inefficiencies impacting critical medical supply chains and, ultimately, patients who rely on these vital pieces of equipment to live healthily and independently.”

ENDS.

Bed and Mattress Extension Guidance

When Should a Bed Be Extended?
A bed should be extended when the person lying in it is too tall for a standard bed— if their feet touch the end or they cannot lie comfortably. Bed extensions are typically used for very tall individuals. Since the internal length of a Harvest bed is 2 metres (6.56 feet), a person up to approximately 1.9 metres (6.3 feet) should fit comfortably, depending on the proportions of their legs to torso.

When assessing a person for a bed extension, ensure their hips are aligned with the bed’s bending point (where it adjusts into a seated position), and raise the backrest. If their feet reach the end of the bed in this position, the bed is too short, and an extension is required. If the bed has been previously extended for another resident but an extension is no longer needed, it should be returned to standard length.

Harvest Healthcare offers beds with a built-in mattress extension, allowing for easy adjustment between lengths.

Where Should a Mattress Extension Be Positioned?

There is often confusion about where to place a mattress extension— some believe it belongs at the foot end, others at the head. In fact, the correct position is at the head end of the bed. Mattress extensions do not offer pressure relief and can pose a pressure risk to the heels if placed at the foot end.

To ensure full support for the pillow, the depth of the mattress extension must match the depth of the mattress. At Harvest Healthcare, all our mattresses and mattress extensions are 20 cm deep to provide consistent support.

The most common reason for incorrect placement at the foot of the bed is that mattress extensions tend to shift or fall off when the backrest is raised. To solve this, Harvest Healthcare now offers a strapped mattress extension that secures directly to the mattress platform, preventing movement during repositioning.

For orders and further advice, please contact our customer service team.

 

Product Code Dimensions
HFIM2016S 900mm x 200mm x 160mm
HFIM2016.12S 1200mm x 200mm x 160mm

Visco MultiZone Evaluation Case Series

Download PDF: Visco Multizone Evaluation Case Series

Visco MultiZone Evaluation Case Series

Danielle Longthorn, Home Manager and Allyson Sanderson, Regional Senior Nurse, HC-One Care Homes

 

Background

The Harvest Healthcare Visco MultiZone mattress is an enhanced static mattress comprising varying density visco-elastic memory foam “Zones” across key areas of the mattress. The zones allow for higher levels of pressure relief around the sacral and feet areas whilst providing firmer support to the head, back and behind the knee, ensuring superior pressure redistribution across the entire body. The Visco MultiZone mattress is complete with a vapour-permeable, four-way stretch, water-resistant cover, which is machine washable up to 95 ºC. Suitable for very high-risk residents weighing up to 27 Stone (177 kg) and with pressure ulcers up to a category 2.

Method

A five-resident evaluation of the Visco MultiZone was commenced across four nursing units within the HC-One care homes. Prior to the evaluation, all five residents were on alternative castellated, very high-risk memory foam mattresses. Residents had an initial clinical assessment, mid-point assessment at five weeks and the final assessment at ten weeks when the trial was completed.

Data collected included age, sex, past medical history, skin condition, continence status, weight, BMI and mobility. Using the Waterlow tool, the risk of pressure ulcer development was determined to ensure the suitability of the Visco MultiZone and a dependency score was assigned to each resident, with 1 being low and 4 very high.

Initial Assessment

Resident 1

A 92-year-old female with a history of Type II Diabetes, Hypertension, Atrial Fibrillation, Heart Failure and Vascular Dementia. There was the presence of introguinous dermatitis under the right breast, but otherwise, the skin was healthy and intact, with no history of pressure damage. She was taking a normal diet and fluids, weight 51.2kg, BMI 22.1 and a Waterlow score of 22. She was fully mobile and repositioned herself independently but tended to sit for long periods of time. She was continent with a dependency score of 3.

Resident 2

A 96-year-old female with a history of Hypertension, Chronic Kidney Disease, Osteoarthritis, and considered frail with previous falls and a fractured neck of femur. There were skin tears to both the right and left legs, but the skin was otherwise healthy and intact, with no history of pressure damage. She was taking a normal diet and fluids, weight 47.5kg, BMI 20 and a Waterlow score of 19. The resident was immobile, being transferred with a hoist and repositioned 4 hourly. She was continent but presented with a UTI at the initial assessment and a dependency score of 3. She was using a memory foam pressure-relieving cushion in conjunction with the Visco Multizone.

Resident 3

A 92-year-old male with a history of Dementia, Epilepsy, Rheumatoid Arthritis and considered frail. His skin presented as dry and was treated with Hydromol, but otherwise intact, with no history of pressure damage. He was taking a normal diet and fluids, weight 59.15kg, BMI 19 and a Waterlow score of 20. He was independently mobile but tended to sit for long periods of time and declined the use of a pressure-relieving cushion. He was continent and had a dependency score of 1.

Resident 4

An 88-year-old male with a history of Spinal Stroke, Vascular Dementia, previous falls and considered frail. Presented with dry skin, which was being managed with derma cream, and bruises were visible on the left hip and right arm due to a recent fall. No history of pressure damage. He was taking a normal diet and fluids, weight 51.25kg, BMI 22 and a Waterlow score of 18. He was mobile but tended to lie in bed most of the day, continent and a dependency score of 4.

Resident 5

A 65-year-old male with a history of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder, Tuberculosis, Bronchiectasis and Type II Diabetes. His skin presented as dry and was treated with Zerobase, but otherwise intact, with no history of pressure damage. He was taking a normal diet and fluids, weight 45.2kg, BMI 19 and a Waterlow score of 18. He was independently mobile and continent and had a dependency score of 2. He was using a memory foam pressure-relieving cushion in conjunction with the Visco MultiZone.

Mid-Point Assessment (Week 5)

A five-resident evaluation of the Visco MultiZone was commenced across four nursing units within the HC-One care homes. Prior to the evaluation, all five residents were on alternative castellated, very high-risk memory foam mattresses. Residents had an initial clinical assessment, mid-point assessment at five weeks and the final assessment at ten weeks when the trial was completed.

Data collected included age, sex, past medical history, skin condition, continence status, weight, BMI and mobility. Using the Waterlow tool, the risk of pressure ulcer development was determined to ensure the suitability of the Visco MultiZone and a dependency score was assigned to each resident, with 1 being low and 4 very high.

Final Assessment (Week 10)

The final assessment was performed at week ten. Resident 1 had been admitted to the hospital during the period since the mid-point assessment following a fall, which left red marks on her back; these were still present. Her BMI had reduced to 20.7, and Waterlow increased to 23, but the MultiZone continued to be a suitable support surface. Resident 3 had also sustained injuries to his back following a fall. However, these were healed before the final assessment. There were no other clinical changes to note at the end of the evaluation. Clinicians reported the mattress with the performance of the MultiZone mattress and found it easy to clean and compliant with organisation infection prevention and control policies.

Resident feedback was overall good. Three residents provided favourable comments, such as “It was good, comfortable,” “It was comfortable,” and “I’m sleeping well.” One resident mentioned that she “did not like it,” though this was also her opinion regarding the previous mattress. Another resident was unable to comment; however, clinicians observed that she appeared comfortable, with no changes noted in her sleeping pattern.

Conclusion

Even though it was a small cohort of residents, the trial was considered a success due to the data presented in this case study. Both resident and clinician feedback has been positive, with mattress comfort and resident sleep quality highlighted. The Harvest Healthcare Visco MultiZone has now replaced the alternative castellated, very high-risk memory foam mattresses across the HC-One care homes with guidance information developed by Harvest Healthcare for the organisation.

Harvest Healthcare will continue to collect clinician and resident feedback to ensure the MultiZone continues to perform effectively and to support new product development in the future.

 

For more information please visit the Harvest Healthcare website

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