Stopping the Slide: How Hospital Bed Design Can Minimize Active and Passive Patient Migration.

Patient migration, or the amount of movement toward the foot of the bed, has been shown to significantly vary because of the mechanical design differences in hospital beds. Previously, the amount of migration was measured immediately following head-of-bed articulation in healthy subjects. This study not only evaluates how much migration occurs immediately after head-of-bed articulation but also measures additional migration during a standard 2-hour repositioning period in subjects with limited mobility.