Sleep is critical in maintaining energy balance, cognitive function, and overall health. For those using a hospital bed at home due to illness, disability, or pain, finding the right bed is essential for achieving restorative sleep. This guide explores the key differences between hospital beds, offers honest customer feedback, answers frequently asked questions, and highlights important features to consider before purchasing.
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Sleep is essential for your overall well-being, so your sleep space should be tailored to help you get the best rest possible! While you sleep, your brain recovers from the stresses of the day, and the quality and quantity of sleep directly impact your performance and decision-making. A good night's sleep leaves you feeling more alert, positive, and better equipped to ward off illness and tackle medical challenges. It also helps you get along with others and improves your overall physical and mental health.
If a person spends more than 15 hours daily in bed or requires long-term care, a full-electric home hospital bed offers the best comfort and durability while reducing physical strain on caregivers. However, these beds are also the most expensive. Manual and semi-electric beds are more affordable and may be suitable for short-term use, but they require more effort from caregivers and offer less independence for the patient.
Patient mobility plays a crucial role in selecting the right home hospital bed. A highly adjustable electric or semi-electric bed is ideal for those who are unsteady or at risk of falling. It’s also a great choice for individuals who cannot reposition themselves or safely get in and out of bed without height adjustments. However, if a patient can get in and out of bed independently and stand steadily a manually adjusted bed may be a more cost-effective option.
Caregiver needs should be considered to ensure the proper level of care can be provided. For a patient requiring many position changes, a manual bed wouldn’t be the best choice. An electric bed will take the most strain off a caregiver. A caregiver’s strength and stamina should be considered when deciding which home hospital bed is best.
A bariatric bed is wider than a standard bed, providing greater comfort for heavier users. Pediatric patients will be safer and more comfortable in a child-sized bed. Beds can also be customized for taller patients. No matter the size needed, the right bed can be found!
For patients who spend most of their time in bed, especially if mobility challenges prevent them from regularly self-repositioning, a hospital bed’s positioning features can significantly impact comfort and quality of sleep. The number of sections, position options, and height adjustability contribute to the user experience. Here are the most popular positioning options:
Optional assembly services simplify setting up a hospital bed at home, removing the guesswork and effort. During a stressful time, having professionals correctly assemble the bed can reduce anxiety and help create a calmer, more comfortable environment.
Rehabmart has a large selection of hospital beds and other products that offer assembly services.
A hospital bed at home can be a valuable tool for promoting rest and healing. Whether recovering from an injury, adjusting to mobility limitations, or transitioning from an in-patient stay, a home hospital bed can enhance health, independence, and overall quality of life.
The adjustable knee and head sections improve incontinence support, and easy sanitization helps maintain a healthy environment. Repositioning options reduce the risk of pressure ulcers and provide comfortable postural support. Safety features like side rails, bolstered mattresses, and height adjustability further minimize the risk of falling out of bed.
This answer is different for everyone, but there are options to fit any needs. Beds that have multiple positions to correctly and comfortably support the body, mattresses that range in firmness, and available therapeutic features all impact the user's comfort.
A full-electric hospital bed electrically adjusts the height, head, and foot positions with the press of a button. Benefits include fostering patient independence and safety features to ensure maximum user comfort and safety while minimizing the physical strain on a caregiver.
Yes, we have a wide selection of hospital and home care beds!
A semi-electric bed combines manual and electric adjustments. The head and foot sections are typically adjusted electrically, while a hand crank manually adjusts the bed’s height. This style is ideal for users who need to adjust the head and foot sections for comfort but don’t require frequent height adjustments when getting in and out of bed.
A bariatric hospital bed is designed to meet larger-framed users' size and support needs, handling more weight than standard hospital beds. Some models can support up to 1,000 pounds, while others are suited for patients weighing 350-450 pounds, filling the gap where standard beds fall short. With heavy-duty construction, these beds are durable and feature height adjustability, safety rails, and extra width to cater specifically to bariatric patients.
Medicare will cover home hospital beds if they are prescribed by a doctor as medically necessary durable medical equipment.
A fully electric home hospital bed can range from $500 to $, and the mattress isn’t always included, so consumers need to ensure they are also getting all the appropriate accessories when purchasing a bed.
The primary purpose of a hospital bed is to provide effective care and treatment while ensuring patient safety and comfort. Adjustable beds are designed with a focus on maximizing user comfort and support for activities like sleeping, reading, eating, watching TV, or relaxing. They resemble standard beds more closely, while home hospital beds are geared toward treatment and often have a more institutional design and feel
A hospital bed for home care has features that cater to the needs of people recovering from an injury or who have to spend a lot of time in bed. Their adjustability makes them more appropriate than a standard bed for providing comfortable support and enabling caregivers to deliver quality care.
There are three main types of hospital beds: manual, semi-electric, and full-electric. Below, we break down each bed and our top-recommended product.
Manual hospital beds are the least expensive models, with fewer features than semi-electric or full-electric options. A manual hospital bed requires a caregiver to make adjustments via a hand crank, making them most appropriate when frequent adjustments are unnecessary.
A semi-electric hospital bed is a good choice for someone who has good enough balance to not need to adjust the height of the bed to transfer on and off. This bed style uses electric and manual adjustments, with the head and foot sections usually adjusted electrically while the height is adjusted with a manual crank.
Best Semi-Electric Hospital Bed: Competitor II Semi-Electric Hospital Bed by Drive Medical
The height, head, and feet adjustments are made with the push of a button on a full-electric hospital bed. If a patient can control the bed positioning, it decreases reliance on caregiver assistance and increases independence and confidence. If a caregiver isn’t close by, most full-electric beds have a feature that locks the bed in position so a patient can’t accidentally move it into a position that could be dangerous.
Best Full Electric Hospital Bed: Lumina Medical Electric Hospital Bed with 5 Functions
Specialty hospital beds are specialized beds that are designed to meet very specific patient needs. Some specialty beds address fall risks, bariatric patient weight, and non-clinical designs.
Although not hospital beds, sleep-to-stand beds have some of the exact positioning options as hospital beds. Sometimes, they are referred to as sit-to-stand beds or adjustable beds. They provide comfortable support for many things a person would use a home hospital bed for, like sleeping, reading, watching TV, or relaxing. They look more like standard beds and can be ordered in larger sizes to accommodate two sleepers. The less-institutional feel is attractive to many users. There are a few basic models with manually adjustable frames, but they are not used in caregiving settings. By far, most adjustable beds are fully electric, and some can take users from lying down to standing up for easy transfers. They are a good choice for people who seek some of the features of a hospital bed but want a traditional bed's look, feel, and size options.
Best Sleep to Stand Bed: Envyy EZ Out Sleep to Stand Electric Lift Bed - Twin Sized - Fixed Height - by Platinum Health
Low beds are ideal for people with a higher risk of falling because they reduce the distance between the bed and the floor, decreasing the risk of injury from a fall. These beds make it easier for users to get in and out of bed, which helps minimize the strain on a caregiver during transfers. Usually, the height is adjusted electrically, and positioning adjustability includes elevating and reclining the head and feet sections and allowing for ergonomic lying down and sitting.
Best Low Bed: FloorBed by Accora, Floor Level Fall Prevention, Height-Adjustable, Ultra-Low Bed with Bariatric Option
Standard hospital beds have a weight capacity of 350 to 450 pounds. Bariatric hospital beds, also called heavy-duty beds, can accommodate users weighing up to 1,000 pounds. Along with heavy-duty construction and larger sizes, with widths as wide as 54 inches, bariatric hospital beds feature height adjustability and can be ordered with safety rails. A bariatric bed, especially for someone who can’t independently reposition in a smaller bed, will support a larger patient in comfort and dignity.
Best Bariatric Hospital Bed: Lincoln Expandable Five Function Bariatric Electric Bed with Trendelenburg
Deluxe hospital beds are built for long-term, heavy-duty use, meeting the needs of acute-care patients and caregivers. Side rails, mitigated entrapment risk, and exit alarms focus on patient safety. User-friendly controls include a nurse panel, and patients can adjust the bed position without assistance. Benefits of a deluxe bed include ease of treatment delivery provided by the maneuverability, electric height adjustability, and the list of accessories available with this type of bed.
Best Deluxe Hospital Bed: Span America Advantage Hospital Bed
Although not technically a hospital bed, residential design beds have hospital bed functionality in a bed you’d find at home. The ability to adjust this bed’s height and the option to install side rails make it easier for users to get out of bed than with a standard bed. The electric adjustability helps relieve pressure points and combat the development of bed sores, while the ergonomic positioning provides support and comfort. They can be ordered with waterproof mattress covers that contribute to a clinically sanitized environment at home.
Best Residential-Looking Hospital Bed: Adjustable Lift Bed with Sleep-to-Stand Feature - Envyy by Platinum Health
Although not hospital beds, safety beds offer features that address special needs and medical conditions and support sleep in a secure space. Enclosed by walls, fabric, or rails, in sizes appropriate for children and adults. Safety beds protect from falls, prevent unassisted exits, provide easy caregiver access, and protect from entrapment or entanglement. They have features like padding to protect users who have seizures, access ports for medical equipment, and support for those with sensory processing disorders who benefit from a completely enclosed space. They come in fixed heights or with manual or powered height adjustability, and mattresses range from air to gel to articulating. Some portable models are easy to take along while traveling.
When choosing a home hospital bed, select the options that best meet your needs for comfort and care to ensure the most restorative and healing sleep possible. We've reviewed the types of hospital beds available, and since not all beds come with dedicated mattresses, it's important to carefully consider your mattress needs as well.
Hospital beds and adjustable beds offer head and foot angle adjustments for people who require changes in position due to pain, illness, surgery, snoring, sleep apnea, or simply for comfort. However, there are some important differences between the two.
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The main difference between a hospital bed and an adjustable bed is that a hospital bed is designed for people who need temporary or permanent medical care, whereas an adjustable bed is designed for comfort and convenience. If you or a loved one needs an adjustable bed either temporarily or permanently, being aware of the differences between a hospital bed vs adjustable bed will help you make the most appropriate choice.
Both hospital beds and adjustable beds have adjustable bed frames with independent head and foot sections. However, most hospital beds can also be raised and lowered vertically whereas adjustable beds cannot.
Typically, a hospital bed is raised for more ergonomic caregiving—preventing the caregiver from having to bend over—and lowered when the patient is sleeping to minimize any injuries from a fall (hospital beds also come with bed rails, so the risk of a fall is low).
Being able to raise and lower the bed can also be helpful when using patient lifts to transfer the patient between the bed and a wheelchair, power chair, or commode, and for safety while performing exercises for bedridden patients.
Hospital beds are intended for use by a single patient and typically come in an extra-long twin size. Adjustable beds, by contrast, come in several different sizes, including twin, full, queen, king, and even split king—allowing two people to share the bed while adjusting each side of the bed separately.
A note about bed linen: Hospital beds typically require a special extra-long twin fitted sheet whereas adjustable beds usually conform to traditional household linen sizes. Linen for hospital beds is readily available and can be purchased at most medical supply stores.
As hospital beds often need to be moved from place to place, they typically come with wheels for easier portability. This is a helpful feature to have if a patient will be moved between a bedroom and a sitting room or will need to be wheeled between an operating theater and a recovery room. Adjustable beds, as pieces of domestic furniture, aren't designed to be moved around. However, some models fold up for easy storage when not in use.
Hospital beds and adjustable beds have very different features, reflecting the end-user each kind of bed is intended to serve.
Hospital beds typically have:
A handset and remote controls for changing the head or foot angle
Safety rails
A removable footboard
A foam mattress with an easy-to-clean vinyl surface
An over-bed table (optional)
A trapeze bar (optional)
USB charging ports (selected models)
Adjustable beds may have:
Remote, Wi-Fi, and smartphone control
A gel, memory foam, latex, or hybrid mattress
Pre-set positions
Under-bed lighting
USB charging ports
Massage function
Heat function
Wake up alarms
Speakers
Bluetooth
While hospital beds usually come with standard features, adjustable beds can be ordered with custom features to suit the preferences and intended use of the buyer. This reflects the fact that hospital beds have a more utilitarian purpose whereas adjustable beds are used for comfort, convenience, or fun.
Both hospital beds and adjustable beds use electricity to run. However, there are a few differences in the options available as far as the power source is concerned.
Manual bed. The bed is raised and lowered with a hand crank rather than with electricity. Manually cranked hospital beds were the norm before push-button hospital beds were invented in .
Semi-electric bed. This model typically has a hand crank for the bed height and powered controls for the heat and foot sections. Some models offer powered heat and foot adjustments with a static (non-adjustable) bed height.
Full-electric bed. A full-electric bed has a motorized bed height adjustment as well as powered controls for the head and foot sections. Specialty hospital beds and adjustable beds are typically fully electric.
As pieces of durable medical equipment, hospital beds are designed for functionality rather than aesthetics. The headboard and footboard are typically simple, without elaboration, and the mattress usually has a vinyl outer layer for easy cleaning.
By contrast, adjustable beds come in a wide range of textures and colors and are often indistinguishable from traditional beds. However, with the rising popularity of in-home hospital beds, some manufacturers are starting to design hospital beds with electronic components hidden from view that blend in easily with the decor in your room.
As medical devices, hospital beds are usually manufactured in accordance with FDA guidelines and pass rigorous testing for product safety. In contrast, adjustable beds are not medical devices and don't go through the same testing as hospital beds. Instead, adjustable beds are covered by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, and as such must not present an unreasonable risk of serious injury.
The cost of a hospital bed vs an adjustable bed depends on the size and features of the bed. While basic models may have a similar cost, full-electric adjustable beds with a wide range of features will tend to cost a lot more than basic hospital beds.
If you'll only need an adjustable bed for a few weeks, it's usually more cost-effective to rent hospital beds rather than purchase one outright. However, if you'll need the bed permanently, purchasing one makes more financial sense. Our mobility equipment supply store in Denver, Colorado, for example, offers credit from your hospital bed rental if you later decide to buy the bed.
After considering the unique features of each kind of electric bed, hospital beds are more suited to use by patients with health or mobility challenges and adjustable beds are more suited to use by able-bodied people who simply want greater comfort and convenience than a traditional bed provides.
If you're not sure which kind of bed you prefer or only need it temporarily while recovering from an injury, illness, or surgery, consider hospital bed rental. If you end up needing the bed long-term and find that it's perfect for your needs, you can always buy it later on.
Contact us to discuss your requirements of Manual Bed Crank Handle. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.