User:Kiydal/Nursing

Patient Handling
Healthcare has consistently ranked among the industries with the highest rates of musculoskeletal injuries largely related to patient handling. Anywhere from 30-70% of reported musculoskeletal injuries are related to patient handling.Nurses and other healthcare staff are tasked with routinely lifting, repositioning and mobilizing patients. These tasks present unique ergonomic hazards that results in a high rate of acute and cumulative musculoskeletal injuries such that the healthcare industry experiences up to three times the average rate of musculoskeletal injuries experienced in all other US industries. The most frequently injured body part is the back with up to 72% of nurses reporting non-specific low back pain. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) the single greatest factor in overexertion injuries in healthcare workers is the manual lifting, moving and repositioning of patients. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that for 2021-2022 the rate of overexertion injuries leading to days away from work for nurses was 45.4, for nursing aids it was 145.5 compared to the average for all industries over that time period of 26.1 per 10,000 full time employees. Traditionally, nurses have been trained in a variety of manual patient handling techniques seeking to reduce the risk of musculoskeletal injury. The body of evidence has demonstrated, however, that such interventions are ineffective.

The 1994 revision of the NIOSH lifting equation can be used to determine an upper limit for the safe manual lifting of patients who are cooperative and unlikely to make unexpected movements during positioning. In this context the calculated weight limit is 35 lbs. Any lifting greater than this amount should be performed with the help of an assistive lifting device.