SmartCells® Fall Protection Bedside Mats offer cost effective and highly protective cushioning, while at the same time providing a stable standing surface for balance impaired individuals. In addition SmartCells® Bedside Mats can provide an effective, safe work surface for care givers that do not interfere with the daily routine. Keep in mind, however, that matting is only effective if the person who falls manages to land on it. It may make much more sense to provide the fall protection where the person falls, rather than to hope the person falls where the protection is. For that reason, Fall Protection Flooring, covering the floor in a bedroom and bathroom, or wherever most falls occur, may be a far better solution.
Did You Know?
- 30-35% of people 65+ fall each year
- 20% of seniors who fall and break a hip will die within one year, and about 50% will suffer a major decline in independence
- 1/3rd of hip fracture patients were living in a nursing home at the time of the fracture
Cause of Death in Seniors
Source: NEISS-AIP, 2008
Compare Force Attenuation
SmartCells® Bedside Mats are only ½ inch thick, yet provide more than twice as much force attenuation as mats that are more than twice as thick.
SmartCells® fall protection flooring is 1” thick, yet provide more than five times as much force attenuation as mats that are more than twice as thick.
The SmartCells® / InterfaceFLOR system can increase force attenuation by an additional 30%.
Choosing Between Matting and Cushioned Flooring
1. Is it a trip hazard?
- Any material placed on top of a floor where at-risk-of-fall persons “shuffle” along is a potential trip hazard. If a mat is utilized, look for the greatest cushioning capability combined with the least height.
- Additionally, be sure that the edging is well integrated into the construction of the mat, and will not curl or lift when it is in use. [add mat profile image]
- Fall protection flooring will allow you to avoid this issue entirely, by eliminating mats.
2. Will staff use it?
- The degree to which a fall intervention disrupts or enables normal caregiver routines may determine the overall effectiveness of the intervention. For example, with foam or foam-based bedside mats, typical protocol calls for moving the mat if a balance impaired person is likely to stand on it, or if they are to be transferred, or if wheeled devices are to needed (wheelchairs, carts, I-V hangers, etc.), because the mat is usually too soft and unstable, and will interfere with the activity, is uncomfortable for the caregiver to stand on, or cause a fall. Sometimes this additional change to routine precludes the use of the mat because it is a hassle.
- SmartCells® mats are intended to stay in place for normal caregiver activities, since their dual stiffness feature does not disrupt routine. For cleaning the mats are easily rolled, rather than lifted. SmartCells® provide the additional benefit of anti-fatigue optimization for standing workers.
3. SmartCells® flooring eliminates the hassles of using mats, in addition to enhancing the ability to provide protection from fall-related injuries.
Visit our Products page for exact product specifications. Products in this category include: Anti Fatigue Mats, Anti Fatigue Runners, and Anti-Fatigue Custom Flooring
To Order:
Call Toll Free: (888) 728-3241
Request a Quote via our online form
Email: Sales@SmartCellsUSA.com
"We were able to reduce fractures by almost 45% and less serious injuries requiring hospitalization or ER visits. The SmartCells® fall protection mats are definitely preventing serious injuries from falls when falling out of bed. Of the 22 out-of-bed falls, 12 involved residents with SmartCells® fall protection mats in front of their bed, where we experienced zero fractures."
