For most homes, the best choice is a full electric bed with a height range that goes low for safety and high enough for the caregiver, like the Protekt Akra-FE (9 to 23 inches, 450 lbs). If falls are a concern, go lower; if the user is over about 350 lbs, go bariatric.

Then match the mattress to the person's skin risk and add half rails if the care team recommends them.

A semi-electric bed has motors for the head and foot, but you change the bed's height with a hand crank. A full electric bed moves the head, foot and height with the hand pendant.

If a caregiver raises and lowers the bed every day, full electric is worth it.

A long-term care bed is a facility-grade hospital bed built for daily use by several caregivers, usually with a wide height range and extra positions. The Joerns EasyCare, for example, goes from 7 to 30 inches with a 600 lb safe working load.

They're used in nursing homes and assisted living, and at home for people who need full care.

A low or ultra-low bed is usually the safest choice, because it drops close to the floor so a roll-out is a short slide. The Protekt Protopia Ultra Low goes down to 7 inches.

Many families add a floor mat. Talk with the care team before adding full rails.

Standard homecare beds hold about 350 to 450 lbs. Long-term care beds often hold 500 to 650 lbs, and bariatric beds go from 600 to 1,000 lbs.

Check whether the listing gives patient weight or total weight, and leave room for the mattress and accessories.

Most homecare hospital beds have a 36 by 80 inch sleep surface and run about 86 to 88 inches long overall. Bariatric beds come 42, 48 and 54 inches wide.

Many beds take an extension kit to 84 inches for tall users.

Usually, yes. Homecare beds come apart into the head end, foot end and deck sections, so they carry through standard interior doors.

Measure the door, hallway and any tight turns anyway, especially for bariatric and long-term care beds.

Yes, in sections. Two people can usually carry homecare bed sections up a staircase.

If the stairs are hard for the user, many families set the bed up on the main floor instead.

Yes. We offer fast nationwide shipping, delivered to your door.

Call us at 585-505-6665 if you need it by a certain date, like a hospital discharge.

Not always. Many beds are sold without one, so check the listing. A regular home mattress won't bend with the bed, so you'll want a hospital bed mattress that matches the deck width.

See our hospital bed mattresses.

For someone in bed most of the day, or with existing sores, an alternating pressure or low air loss mattress is the usual choice, like the Protekt Aire 4000DX or the Invacare microAIR MA500. Foam works for people who can still change position on their own.

Ask the care team which support surface they recommend.

It depends on the person. Half rails help many people turn over and get up, and full rails keep someone from rolling out.

For some people with dementia, rails can be a climbing risk, and a low bed with a floor mat is safer. Always use rails made for your bed.

A trapeze hangs above the bed so a user with good arm strength can pull up to reposition or sit up. The Invacare 7740A has a 250 lb safe working load.

It doesn't replace a lift for someone who can't help with the move.

Medicare Part B may cover a hospital bed as durable medical equipment when a doctor prescribes it and it's medically necessary. Coverage and costs depend on the person's plan.

Check with Medicare or your plan before you order.

If the bed will be needed for more than a few months, buying is usually the better value, and you choose exactly the bed and mattress you want.

For short recoveries, ask your discharge planner about options.