Dangers of leaving a side rail down

Every parent should make certain that their kid is safe and secure, especially when they are in cots. The cribs should be as comfortable as possible for the baby. Cots with flaws should not be utilized. In addition, parents should understand when to leave the side rails up or down, as well as the repercussions of doing so. Also, the cot should not be overcrowded because there is a risk of suffocation for the baby. The parents should arrange a clear space in the room so that the infant can sleep in a peaceful environment. This paper seeks to examine the dangers of leaving a side rail down and the benefits of leaving the side rail up on a nine-month-old infant. There are many risks when the side rail is left down or up.

In nursing career, side rail was viewed as one of the safety devices that can be used on infants. However, due to numerous risks, injuries and deaths that are associated with side rail especially when it is dropped down. Side rails are not safe. Most people believe that there are many deaths and injuries that are caused leaving the side rail down. The baby gets trapped in between the cot and the mattress having their neck tightly caught between the rail and the side rails especially after partially sliding off the bed.

Some individuals believe that restrained infants particular nine months old are likely to fall and sustain n injury compared to the untrained ones. The side rails on the bed when dropped down may cause severe damage because the babies may try to climb over them and falls. Moreover, there is the probability of the child getting entrapped and suffocated from the existing side rails. Notably, the entrapment from the bed is a severe safety issue that causes several injuries and deaths to many infants. Vulnerable people like babies can have their head; chest caught when they are trying to find their way out of the cot.

One of the risks of leaving a courtside rail down to an infant especially nine months old is that they may fall and sustain severe injuries. More to this, they may even die when they get their head or neck trapped between the rails. Therefore, if is in hospitals, the parents may take the matter to court and sue the hospitals for negligence. Instead of waiting to attend to court sessions for hearing, the nurses should ensure that the side rails are not left down so that they can prevent unnecessary injuries. The safety of these babies can be made safe and secured by ascertaining that the cot is in a good position. As a matter of fact, children would want the assistance hence they wake up. Some of them would try to make their way out of the cot.

Further, the rails are considered to be a secure place that parents can leave their babies within the house unattended to. Hence every new parent is supposed to purchase rails and be certain of the safety of their child. Currently, the organizations which either manufacture or sell baby rails are expected to comply with new safety standards which are always set by the commission of the consumer product safety. Thus, the standards given to the manufactures illustrates all the dos and what is not allowed during the production of these rails as well as the designs that are considered to be safest for the children and can be easily used by the parents. However, due to installation error, assembling or a malfunction, the baby’s head can be trapped in between the gap existing between the rail and the mattress which can lead to suffocation of the child.

Besides, some side rails assist the nurses as well as the parents in providing the proper protection to the babies either in the hospital or at home. Further, this kind of side rails is always sold within the pack of four plus the rails offers medium thickness foam which helps in the reduction of the cases of the contusions that majorly results from the contact with the side bed rails. Also, the rails can be applied in various ways in order to prevent entrapment of the infant to the bed as well as any other related injuries or exiting the bed without permission for the child. Other side rails have wedges that can help in covering or rather closing the gap that exists between the half rail sides, or even the two rails can be fastened to provide full side rails that can provide protection on all sides of the bed with the inclusion of the footboards and the headboards. Moreover, the wedges can be positioned on the mattress to assist in the positioning of the children on the slight side in order to ease pressure building on the back of the baby and to increase the comfort of the child.

Moreover, at homes or hospitals, there is need to use side rails for babies who are believed to be at the age of falling out of their beds. These cots should be regularly checked by nurses and parents. Notably, keeping the side rails up will help the infants from falling from the cots. This is because these kids will wake up struggling to move and seek for attention. Thus, the side rails will prevent them from falling they are left up. However, a lot of struggle may make the infant struggle and even fall from the side rail. Thus, it is advisable that the parents or their caretaker be always near so that these infants to do not get unnecessary when the side rail is left up. Hence, when side rails are left up, it will help in reducing injuries when infant fall. Also, when the side rails are left up, they will be able to prevent cuts, scrapes, and skin brushing. The reason being, when the rails are left down, the infants may easily fall and have cuts and skin bruises.

Also, when the infants wake up, they may become agitated and thus seek to move out of the rail. It is also essential to recognize a type of cot before buying one for the baby. If the parent or caretaker is not sure about the kind of cot they should buy, then it is important for them to consult with the specialists so that they do not risk the life of the child. Many people argue that a type of a cot is critical in ensuring the safety of a baby. They posit that usually when babies wake up especially who is nine months old, they will tend to move and seek for attention. Therefore, these babies get themselves either falling own when the rail sides were left down or having the neck or leg trapped between the holes in the cot. Infants should be taken care of especially the nine months old. Accurate, appropriate parental care and management is necessary to prevent injuries and deaths that occur due to infant falling from their cots. Hence, parents should identify the most suitable cots for their infants.

In conclusion, taking care of an infant is a noble thing that every parent, nurses or caretaker should take seriously. The infants are at the stage where they need a lot of care. They risk falling when left in their side rails. As such, they tend to need attention from their parents or caregivers. Therefore it is essential always to leave the side rails up to prevent injuries of an infant. Moreover, parents should be educated on the use of side rails. They should be told when and how to leave the side rails up or down. Overall, an infant needs a maximum care from theory parents and caretakers. It is recommended that the parents should buy comfortable cots. However, these cots should left be checked often when the baby is sleeping to checked whether they are safe or not. Overall, there are a lot of risks that are involved when the rail sides are left down. Similarly, there are benefits of leaving the rail sides up.