Safe Patient Handling       Acute Care

Safe Patient Handling (SPH) is a "Must Do" for clinical providers in Oregon hospitals.

The primary reasons to develop your own safe patient handling program include:

• Strengthens your existing patient safety efforts for clinical care

• Promotes a safety culture for your employees and staff

• Provides increased job satisfaction which impacts workforce retention

• Decreases employee compensation claims by providing the appropriate tools and techniques for safe patient handling

Several Oregon hospitals are already on board with this effort. Do your part in making Oregon a leader in safe patient handling!

On this page:

Guidelines & Toolkits for Implementing SPH Programs

White Papers

Articles

Other Resources

Click here to access a variety of tools to assist with implementing a SPH program from the VA Sunshine Health Care Network - VISN 8 Patient Safety Center of Inquiry, Tampa, FL such as:

• Patient Care Ergonomics Resource Guide: Safe Patient Handling and Movement.

• Algorithms for Patient Handling

• Facility Safe Patient Handling Policy Draft

• Safety Huddle - method of knowledge transfer

• Communication Strategies Presentations

• Safe Patient Handling Guidebook for Facility Champions/Coordinators

• Safe Patient Handling Unit Binder for Peer Leaders & Staff

• Comprehensive Safe Patient Handling Bibliography - Articles Published by the VISN 8 Patient Safety Center of Inquiry Staff, Tampa, FL

• Other VA Toolkits/Resources

Safe Patient Handling resources from the American Nurses Association.

Beyond Getting Started: A Resource Guide for Implementing a Safe Patient Handling Program in the Acute Care Setting (see Appendix B for a sample policy, Developed by the AOHP OSHA Alliance Implementation Team).

Safe Patient Handling and Movement in the Perioperative setting (2007) from the Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses (AORN).

Safe Patient Handling & Movement in the Orthopedic Setting (2008) Algorithms for handling and movement of orthopedic patients from the National Association of Orthopedic Nurses (NAON).

HealthCare Wide Hazards Module -Ergonomics from Federal OSHA

Safe Patient Handling in Health Care: Applied Ergonomics for Nurses and Health Care Workers and Patient Orientation (2004). This training program consists of DVD training materials for both employees and patients. A 10 minute video for patients and families provides an overview of equipment  commonly used in hospitals and long term care facilities. Contact Pisith Kong at Oregon Nurses Association. Email:kong@oregonrn.org for more information.

St. Charles Medical Center, Bend, OR.

Good Shepherd Medical Center, Hermiston, OR

Safe Patient Handling: A Summary of the Issue and Solutions: The Evidence Base (2009). Enos, L. A summary of current literature and data about Safe Patient Handling related issues developed for the Coalition for Healthcare Worker and Patient Safety (CHAPS). Includes an extensive reference list.

Safe Patient Handling: A Report, March 2006. Peter D. Hart Research Associates. Conducted on behalf of American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Healthcare

The Illustrated Guide to Safe Patient Handling and Movement (2009). Nelson, A.L., Motacki , K, Menzel, N. New York, NY. Springer Publishing.

Safe Patient Handling and Movement: A Practical Guide for Health Care Professionals (2006). Audrey Nelson Editor. Springer Publishing.

Back Injury among Healthcare Workers: Causes, Solutions, and Impacts (2004). W. Charney & A Hudson. CRC Press.

Development and evaluation of a multifaceted ergonomics program to prevent injuries associated with patient handling tasks. (2006). Nelson, A, et al. International Journal of Nursing Studies, August 2006, 43(6).

Development of the National Association of Orthopaedic Nurses Guidance Statement on Safe Patient Handling and Movement in the Orthopaedic Setting (2009). Sedlak, C et al. Orthopaedic Nursing 28(S2): S2-S8.

Evidence-Based Practices for Safe Patient Handling and Movement (2004). Nelson, A. & Baptiste, A. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing. Vol. #9 No. 3.

Evidence-Based Patient Handling, Tasks, Equipment and Interventions (2003). Sue Hignett et al. Taylor and Francis http://www.tandf.co.uk/books/ or http://www.amazon.com/

Factors Associated With Safe Patient Handling Behaviors Among Critical Care Nurses (2010). Lee, S.J. et al. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 53:886-897, 2010.

Longitudinal Relationship of Work Hours, Mandatory Overtime, and On-call to Musculoskeletal Problems in Nurses (2006). Trinkoff, A., et. al. American Journal of Industrial Medicine 49:964–971.

Musculoskeletal Injuries Resulting From Patient Handling Tasks Among Hospital Workers (2009).Pompeii, L.A., et al. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL MEDICINE 52:571–578 (2009).

Patient Handling: Fact vs. Fiction ( 2010). Howard, N. American Nurse Today. 5(7):32-34.

Preventing Back Injuries in Healthcare Settings from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) (2008).

Patient Handling Tasks with High Risk for Musculoskeletal Disorders in Critical Care ( 2007). Waters, T., Nelson, A., & Proctor, C. Crit Care Nurs Clin N Am 19: 131–143.

Recommendations for Turning Patients With Orthopaedic Impairment (2009).  Gonzalez, C.M., et al. Orthopaedic Nursing 28(s2):S9-S12.

Recommendations for Vertical Transfer of a Postoperative Total Hip Replacement Patient (Bed to Chair, Chair to Toilet, Chair to Chair, or Car to Chair (2009).Gonzalez, C.M., et al. Orthopaedic Nursing 28(s2):S13-S17.

Safe Ambulation of an Orthopaedic Patient (2009). Radawiec, S. et al. Orthopaedic Nursing 28(S2): S24-S27.

Safe Patient Handling (2007), Nelson, A et. al. Nursing Management, March 2007:26-33.

Safe Patient Handling and Movement in a Pediatric Setting (2009). Motacki, K & Motakci, L.M. Pediatr Nurs. 2009;35(4)

Safe Vertical Transfer of Patient With Extremity Cast or Splint (2009). Patterson, M et al. Orthopaedic Nursing 28: s18-s23.

^{Strengthening Your Evidence Base: Focus on Safe Patient Handling(2010). Menzel, N. & Nelson, A} American Nurse Today. 5(7):38-40.

Underreporting of Musculoskeletal Disorders among Health Care Workers: Research Needs (2008). Menzel,N. AAOHN Journal, 56 (12): 487-493.

When is it Safe to Manually Lift a Patient? (2007).Waters, T.R. American Journal of Nursing, 107(8), 53-59.

Workplace Prevention and Musculoskeletal Injuries in Nurses (2003). Trinkoff, A.M., Brady, B., & Nielsen, K. J Nurs Adm, 33(3):153-158.

A Back Injury Prevention Guide For Health Care Providers from the Californian Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA)

Ergoweb supports the ergonomics community with industry news, resources and a collaboration community. Various articles and resources.
 

Handle With Care, Patient Handling and the Application of Ergonomics Requirements and other SPH program tools from WorkSafe BC

Lifting Patients/Residents/Clients in Health Care, Washington State 2005 the final report from the WA State Lifting in Health Care Task Force that contains case studies and data from health care facilities in the state. Note: The link is to the report summary only, please contact SHARP for the entire report - Phone: 1-888-66-SHARP (toll-free) or 360-902-5667 or E-mail SHARP@Lni.wa.gov

Safe Patient Handling in Washington State - A Clearing House for SPH information and the WA state SPH law

Reference Guidelines for Safe Patient Handling from the Occupational Health & Safety Agency for Healthcare in British Columbia (OHSAH)

Transferring People Safely, 2009 from WorkSafe Victoria, Australia

Washington State Dept. of Labor and Industries Ergo Ideas Bank – Search for healthcare -Topics include patient handling and more.