
		June 2011

Dear Subscriber,

Welcome to the latest Issue of Safe Lifting News. Our mission is to keep you informed about what's happening in the world of safe patient lifting and caregiver injury prevention. If you feel others in your organization might benefit from receiving Safe Lifting News on a regular basis, please forward along so that they can sign up!

Sincerely,

Alex White, Editor
812.931.3492
Alex.White@Hill-Rom.com

Results of May Poll

Go here to see the results of last month's poll.

ASPHP Offers Position Statement on Certification in Safe Patient Handling

The recently announced Association of Safe Patient Handling Professionals (ASPHP) has released a Position Statement outlining the rationale and criteria for certification as a safe patient handling professional. Two levels of certification will be available -- Associate and Professional -- and an examination is being developed by the association's Board. Note: the examination is anticipated for availability in mid-2012. IF YOU BECOME A CSPHP NOW, YOU WILL NOT HAVE TO TAKE THE EXAM AT THAT TIME -- YOU WILL BE GRANDFATHERED IN. To read the Position Statement, click here.

Review our Sept. 2010 Poll on "National Certification"

Poll question: Should there be a formal, national certification offered for caregivers and staff whose job descriptions require performance of patient lifting, repositioning, and transfer tasks?

Click here to review the results of our Sept., 2010, Reader Poll on National Certification for patient handling professionals.

Have you seen the new SPHM journal?

The American Journal of Safe Patient Handling and Movement is an exciting new quarterly magazine devoted to meeting the needs and interests of anyone who is directly or indirectly involved in our field. Click here to find out more -- including subscription details -- about the American Journal of SPHM.

From the Reading Room

Safe Lifting Programs at Long-Term Care Facilities and Their Impact on Workers Compensation Costs

Previous research by NCCI (the National Council on Compensation Insurance, Inc.) has indicated that long-term care facilities have injury rates that are materially greater than average, and that back injuries are a major contributor to workers compensation claims. To a large degree, these injuries are incurred by workers while lifting and moving patients. Additional NCCI research has identified that productivity-enhancing processes are a major source of improved workplace safety. The use of powered mechanical lifts in long-term care facilities supports these earlier studies regarding the importance of process innovation on workplace injuries. Read the full report here.

Safe Patient/Resident Handling Guide

Even though safe patient handling programs require a commitment of time, money and resources, the return on investment in both direct and indirect costs is rapid. Studies completed by NIOSH found that implementing a Safe Patient Handling program yielded an average 30 percent decrease in patient transfer injuries. Safe Patient Handling programs were also found to produce other benefits such as improving patient quality of care, improving patient comfort and safety during transfer, and reducing the risk of falls, being dropped, or suffering skin tears or bruises. These programs improve job satisfaction and reduce physical stress, allowing caregivers to stay in their jobs longer, further reducing indirect costs. Read this report here.

Health and Safety in Elderly Care – Methods of Moving and Handling in Health Care Practice

The critical nature of moving people with disabilities in care homes and other health care facilities is classified as a high risk activity for health care providers. As such, the health care industry has set forth rules for the safe handling of patients in order to reduce the risk of injury and accidents. Read more here.

Metrics should play major role in risk management, experts say

Metrics are measurements that allow quantitative evaluation of your success, problem areas, and efforts to improve. According to Ed Hall, MS, CSP, senior director of risk management controls and education at Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA, metrics are more than just data compiled on individual issues. Metrics provide risk managers and health care leaders the insight to understand the implications of the data more than if they focused only on the individual "silos" of information about different topics. For example, Stanford's safe patient handling program was aiming for a 30% reduction in patient handling injuries, but actually achieved a 40% reduction over the first year — a success that Hall attributes in part to the effective use of metrics to determine which elements of the program could have the most effect. Read this article here.

Safe Patient Handling in Diagnostic Imaging

Raising awareness of the risk to diagnostic imaging personnel from manually lifting, transferring, and repositioning patients is critical to improving workplace safety and staff utilization. In an injury reduction project conducted by the Occupational Health and Safety Agency for Healthcare British Columbia (OHSAH), ceiling tracks were installed in two out of three nuclear medicine rooms, with the third room, without tracks, forming the control group for the study. Surveys were used both before and after the execution of the program to collect data related to perceived risk for injury, symptoms of pain or discomfort, workflow, and preferred method of patient transfer and positioning. Read the results here.

New toolkit provides tools to practice safe patient handling

AORN has released a new toolkit, "Safe Patient Handling and Movement in the Perioperative Setting." It's designed to provide tools and resources necessary for perioperative nurses to safely handle patients, while protecting themselves. The toolkit includes a pocket reference guide for use in the clinical practice setting, an educational PowerPoint presentation with continuing education credits, awareness posters, a gap analysis template, and a bibliography of supporting articles and research that is based on information in the AORN Guidance Statement: Safe Patient Handling and Movement in the Perioperative Setting. Visit here.



	Static shock risk with slider tubes
I run the Safe Patient Handling program at a large hospital and have implemented slider tubes throughout the hospital. A question came up recently about the static shock that occasionally comes with that transfer. 1) Is it risky in an operating room environment? 2) Is it risky to the patient or staff members who might get shocked?

Zachery Collins, MOTR/L, CPE Certified Professional Ergonomist Occupational Therapist


	Using a sit-to-stand lift with an MS patient who has spasms in her feet, plus upper body weakness
I care for a patient with MS who is 52 years old and weighs 225 pounds. We use a sit-to-stand hoist to assist her to a standing position, however lately she has been having spasms in her feet that cause her to kick the back of the footplate. Further, her upper body is not functioning properly thus she is no longer able to lean back to allow the sling to assist her as designed. Instead she leans forward which causes the sling to slip up toward her shoulders. As her senior caregiver, one of my roles is to reduce risk for her as well as our staff. We have been advised we must not bring her to a standing position, and we should hold her foot in case of spasm. I think this is unsafe because the sit-to-stand hoist is designed to assist her to stand in order to permit a quick transfer. What should I do because I feel as though I am getting nowhere and that she is unsafe.

Belinda Hester Carer, UK

	Effects of turning sheets on pressure redistribution mattresses
Regarding a customer who just purchased the Accumax™ Complete low airloss mattresses for their Versacare® frames, they want to know what impact the Liko® turning sheets have on the effects of the pressure redistribution and microclimate management properties of that mattress if the turning sheets are left under the patients.

Garland Crowell HRC


	Ambulation vest for CABG patients when ambulating
When working with the staff to overcome some of the SPHM issues with CABG patients who have sternal precautions in place, the staff wanted to see if there was any information specific to the CABG patient and the safety of using the equipment? Specifically the master vest for ambulation.

Amber Perez Banner Heart Hospital/ Banner Baywood Medical Center

*The Lift Doctor is actually a panel of clinical and bioengineering lift specialists at Liko


	This Web newsletter is sponsored by Liko, a Hill-Rom company, and is provided as a service to subscribers. Articles and information available from third parties through links to this Web newsletter are provided "as is." Liko is not responsible for the content of linked articles or news items resident on Websites owned or maintained by third parties, nor for content openly accessible via internet search engines, and makes no warranty, express or implied, concerning the accuracy, completeness, or the clinical or financial utility of such information. Users should check the terms and conditions of use of each third party Website accessed via links provided by Liko.