Getting a hospital bed at home

[NetZeroZealot]

Not sure if this is the right place to post but it's a start.
Think we will need to move my father to a bed downstairs and he will need a hospital bed that goes up & down etc..
Anyone else done this, how did you get the bed, how long did it take, can you get them 2nd hand??
Thanks.

DH needed one back in the spring after discharge from hospital, and one wasn't forthcoming. Ended up in a very awkward borrowed single bed which the carers moaned about incessantly. I felt for them but could do nothing about it. Hope you have better luck.

You could always do with an OT assessment, even if you have to fund your own, as they cover things you mightn’t have thought of. My mother got one via OT for free and previously my Dad from NHS on hospital discharge. My mother’s has been changed twice on reassessment- as she’s bedbound now she needed a longer one to stop pressure sores on her feet recently- I’d never have considered that myself which is why I suggest an OT before laying out - if they won’t provide at least you know what is best.
Also if they provide they also fix - the pressure mattress has gone down before but the contractor came straight out - very useful at 11pm and bed unusable! Another thing to consider maybe.

Thanks all. He has been discharged from hospital and the OT was happy for him to go back into his old bed, which we have moved downstairs. They have suggested other mobility aids too.

All points taken on board ref carers and single beds. I don't think we are at that stage yet. I have learned an enormous amount from this thread and thank you to everyone for your contributions which I will take on board.

Not necessarily. My mum is paralysed down one side and has to be manoeuvred with a steady into a shower chair - the council provided carers still give her a shower every morning as part of their 45 minute visit