198 chapter 24
Changing positions
When a child has recently had a spinal
cord injury, he must be turned regularly,
taking great care not to bend his back.
One good way is to
roll him over using
a sheet under him,
like this.
As the child gets stronger, hang loops
and provide other aids, if needed, so she
can learn to turn herself.
At first it is important that the person turn, or be turned, at least every 2
hours, day and night. Later, if there are no signs of pressure sores, the time
between turns can gradually be lengthened to 4 hours. To avoid sleeping
through the night without turning, an alarm clock can be a big help.
When the child begins to sit or use a wheelchair, there is a new serious danger of
pressure sores. The child must get into the habit of taking the pressure off his butt
every few minutes.
Juan has strong arms. He can
lift up his whole body and
hold it up for a minute or two.
This lets the blood circulate in
the butt.
Jose’s arms are weak. He takes the
pressure off his butt by leaning
his whole body over the armrest,
first on one side, and then on the
other.
When doing
this, one
buttock
lifts
in the
air.
Carlota has a wheelchair
with a low back, so she
can lean back and lift
her hips off the seat.
If the chair has no armrests, or
they can be removed, the child
can lie sideways over a pillow on
a high bed. He can rest for 15 to
30 minutes like this.
If he has very little arm and
body control, he can put his
feet on the floor (with help if
needed) and lean forward with
his chest on his knees. This
takes the pressure off his butt.
Or have someone tip his chair
backward for one minute or
more. For a longer ‘nap’ that
rests the butt, someone can tip
his chair backward onto a cot.
To prevent pressure sores when sitting, take the weight off
your butt for one whole minute at least once every 15 minutes!
Disabled village Children