Copper bedrails may fight hospital infections as copper wipes out microbes on contact, according to an article on the NPR website.
"Bacteria, yeasts and viruses are rapidly killed on metallic copper surfaces, and the term 'contact killing' has been coined for this process," wrote the authors of an article on copper in Applied and Environmental Microbiology.
A study of the effects of copper-alloy surfaces in U.S. hospitals shows promising results. Using copper reduced the number of hospital-acquired infections from 8.1 percent in regular rooms to 3.4 percent in the copper rooms.
There are a lot of options for how to incorporate copper, according to the article. In addition to bed rails, IV poles, feeding tables, night tables, even mattress covers can incorporate copper.
A Shift in Healthcare Facilities Management
Trauma-Informed Design Transforms Boston Homeless Shelter
Inside One of Healthcare's Most Ambitious Hospital Projects 
Disinfectant Contact Time: The Case for Biofilm Disruption
Texas HHSC Reaches Construction Milestone for Panhandle State Hospital in Amarillo