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The Safe Patient Handling Steering Committee makes no representations or warranties as to the quality, content, nature, or reliability of the information contained in this website, including but not limited to its currency, accuracy, or completeness. You expressly agree that use of this site, including all content or date distributed by, downloaded, or accessed from or through this site, is at your own risk.
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Planed for the Purchase of Equipment by January 30, 2010
The selection and acquisition of equipment is important when implementing solutions.
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Who will use the equipment and how will they be trained
(e.g., unit-based peer safety leaders)
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Determine equipment locations
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Identify tasks where equipment will be used
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Decide how much of each equipment type is needed
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Identify needed equipment features
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The Safe Patient Handling Steering Committee has compiled several documents detailing the planning and purchasing of both mechanical and manual-assist lifting/handling devices. Please keep in mind that the steering committee does not endorse specific vendors or products even though they might be mentioned in the following documents.
Hospitals can receive up to $1000 per acute care available inpatient bed from a Business & Occupation tax credit. Download the B&O Tax Credit Form.
After completing each of the activities noted above, please consult the Safe Patient Handling Committee’s document of Issues to Consider when selecting a vendor for equipment purchase.
Resources and Tools:
Information about equipment recalls:
- An Australian organization, Independent Living Centres Australia, that reports recalls, Click here to view
- The US Food and Drug Administration Device Listing database provides access to recall information on lifting equipment, Click here to view
Documentation
Lateral transfer devices are getting slipperier!
It is great that more equipment is available to reduce manual handling of patients. However, their use is not without risks. This is particularly true with lateral transfer devices that reduce friction for an easy slide. Sometimes the slide can be much easier than we anticipate, so easy we could even pull the patient off the bed, table or stretcher on the floor! Direct care staff unfamiliar with these devices should not use them. IT IS CRITICAL that we and our co-workers are trained in how to use them and practice using them. This will prevent adverse events, like having the patient on the floor and injured.
The OCHE Safe Patient Handling Equipment Purchasing Guide and Checklist. The Oregon Coalition for Health Care Ergonomics (OCHE) developed this checklist to help with the patient handling equipment assessment and purchase process.
The Patient/Resident Ceiling Lift Program was developed in 2002 by the Occupational Health and Safety Agency for Healthcare in British Columbia. The document was created as a guide for a program managed by OHSAH and is heavily reliant on site-level steering committees and the involvement of workers at all stages of the program.
The Ceiling Track Lift Implementation Manual was created by the Ceiling Track Lift Task Force, comprised of representatives from across the Okanagan Similkameen Health Program (OSHP), in Norther British Columbia, Canada. Members of this task force represented nursing management (extended care), Hospital Employees' Union (HEU), maintenance, planning, purchasing, and Workplace Health and Safety (WH&S). The document details the procedures involved in implementing a ceiling track lift.
Providence St. Peter Hospital founded a proposal panel that was charged with selecting a ceiling lift vendor partner. The partner will work with PSPH over the next few years to bring ceiling lift technology to PSPH and to provide training and support to help them meet their goals of reducing patient handling hazards and injuries. This tool was then used to select the most appropriate vendor given the needs of the facility. Please contact Dan.Donahue@providence.org for more information.
The Transfer Assist Devices for the Safer Handling of Patients guide was created by the Workers' Compensation Board of British Columbia. The Safe Patient Handling Steering Committee and the WCB of British Columbia do not endorse or prescribe the use of any specific products or suppliers. The WCB does, however, recognize the use of engineering controls that effectively minimize the risk of MSIs to workers.
The AOHP OSHA Alliance Implementation Team's Resource Guide for Implementing a Safe Patient Handling Program in the Acute Care Setting includes information for developing a plan to look at equipment, implementation, and evaluation outcomes. It also has a product evaluation tool, the list of potential types of equipment by hospital department, and a comparison chart for facility wide vs. lift teams.
Floor and Ceiling Lift Sling Usage: Safety Guidelines: guidelines for the safe and proper use of slings
Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) Policy Statement on Ceiling Lifts, Ergo Tugs and Slings. DOSH has determined that ceiling lifts are not covered by the general industry crane standards and that Ergo Tugs do not require powered industrial truck (PIT) certification.
Go to Step 6: Evaluate Your Safe Patient Handling Program Annually
For questions or comments about this site please contact
Washington's Safe Patient Handling Steering Committee at
sph@washingtonsafepatienthandling.com
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