Lightening the Load: Ergonomic Solutions that Reduce Patient Lifting Injuries

摘要

If healthcare organizations have been teaching and practicing good body mechanics and safe lifting techniques, as well as investing in expensive lifting apparatus for years, why aren't worker injury rates going down? Sprains and strains continue to top the list of healthcare worker injuries. Healthcare organizations are discovering that it requires more than a training class, reminder posters on the walls and a couple of portable lifts to measurably impact worker injury rates. With the average patient body weight and size on the increase, and recommended lifting weight limits on the decrease – now at 35 pounds – different solutions need to be applied in this industry to make a substantial impact. This article will review the challenges healthcare organizations face in achieving significant and long-lasting reductions in injury rates, and will articulate the culture shift that needs to occur in order to implement a successful safe patient handling program. We will also present several case studies demonstrating how some hospitals are successfully making this culture shift and tackling the challenge of training staff on new equipment and procedures. Real world examples will be shown of different types of lifting, transferring, and repositioning equipment that does not require any manual maneuvering and places minimal physical demands on the staff.