FURNITURE & INTERIORS Means Care Beans


Patrick Tonks, Creative Director at specialist bean bag supplier GreatBeanBags, discusses


the features of bean bags that can make them ideal for a medical environment.


Medical care and bean bags are not typically a combination many would consider. However, the malleable properties combined with innovative material choices enable bean bags to be increasingly utilised in medical environments. Here are just some of the uses for bean bags in a healthcare capacity...


Sensory Processing Disorders (SPD) Bean bags can be a useful asset in assisting children with hypersensitivity, hyposensitivity and sensory disorders. The average classroom is unfortunately not set up to aid children suffering from these illnesses as standard. In past years, vast improvements have been introduced into the educational environment, and some additions have been the replacement of furniture, for example.


Sensory bean bags are made from a durable waterproof material that caters for the need of these children. Bean bags, in general, are great for sensory stimuli for children with hyposensitivity as it surrounds them in a stimulating, squeezable environment. Children with hypersensitivity can manipulate the bean bag as a protective surrounding for coping with the environmental over-stimulation they receive.


These bean bags are increasingly being introduced into the school environment and receive consistent use within Special Educational Needs (SEN) institutions.


Incontinence Assistance As previously mentioned, bean bags can be waterproof and utilised for school settings, but incontinence is not just confined to younger children. Wherever bean bags are used in medical care, a fully waterproof material is essential.


At GreatBeanBags, we have unique taped seams and tensioned zip flaps which both combine to guard against the ingress of fluids into the bags. The material construction makes the bags completely wipeable and keeps the interior clean, hygienic and dry.


Surgery Recovery The material of medical bean bags is not only waterproof but, being made with medical grade, moisture vapour permeable, multi-stretch fabric, it allows them to be wiped down and


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bags to be increasingly utilised in medical environments.”


“The malleable properties combined with innovative material choices enable bean


washed. The covers can be removed and washed at 70°C which is functional for surgery recovery.


Any bodily fluids that may be leaking from wounds, for example, can be cleaned and wiped. Carers use bean bags for surgery care due to their ease of movement, especially for aſtercare with limb elevation. We have found particular success with use in postoperative care for knee surgeries, in addition to cranial skeletal injuries, as the bean bags are an ideal, comfortable elevation solution. The bean bag can act as a structured pillow; you place the bag down, draw the air out for the required size and this consequently forms a solid base for the injured area.


Assistance in Palliative Care One final use we currently have for bean bags in the medical landscape is with assisting individuals in palliative care. They can offer simple floor level comfort, and we have had institutions near our Nottingham base use them for this reason. We don’t directly recommend them as designed to break falls; however, if people find themselves needing a floor level comfort due to inaccessibility to the bed, for example, the bean bags work excellently.


Future Development: Surgical Theatre Beds Trials have begun on future development into bean bags in surgery operations in addition to postoperative care. Patients can be set in particular positions due to the bag’s inherent malleability to act as a rigid bed support. This is a concept that GreatBeanBags is currently developing, with a view to offering it generally in the near future.


www.greatbeanbags.com www.tomorrowscare.co.uk


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