Guest guest Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 Zero lift policies are a little misleading. Even when using lifts correctly, you still have to lift a bit. I use lifts in my treatments in acute care very often. They HELP my treatments be more skilled and safe for both the patient, me, my tech, and it is a good example for the nursing staff. Examples of patient scenarios: Very debilitated patient in ICU: hasn't walked or been out of bed in a week. Dialysis, heart issues, etc: Unable to perform AROM BLE. Able to activate muscles, but not able to complete even partial ROM unassisted. I used the ceiling lift with a positioning sling (size of the bed with 5 loops on either side) to assist rolling. I just hooked up one side of the sling. He could initiate rolling, but needed help, so I had him initiate rolling, lifted him a bit with the lift, and had him finish rolling. We did this for a few reps. Completely wore him out. This is a much better option than me man handling him. I was able to keep my hands free to facilitate and cue. Also, I didn't need a tech. Had he been strong enough to sit on the edge of the bed, I would have used the same lift to sit him (not 2 people total assist), then I could have worked on sitting balance. (Could have also used a floor (hoyer type) lift to so the same task. Bariatric patient: couldn't lift legs due to mass of pannus. Did the same rolling task with this patient. Able to clean him up with 1-2 staff members, not 4-6. Patient was unable to bridge due his size and weight of his pannus. I used the positioning sling loops under his bottom and lifted his rear off the bed enough to get his feet on the bed in hooklying. From this position, he was able to initiate a bridge, needed help from the lift to finish it, but without the lift, he would not have been able to do this at all. Also, hooked up the leg lifter sling to the lift with the sling under his pannus. Lifted the pannus enough for the patient to actually perform AROM to his legs to about 80 degrees flexion. He had not been able to bend them that far in supine due to his pannus. Some patients have a very hard time with supine to sit. That is sometimes the hardest transfer during a treatment session. If your patient also needs to work on sitting balance, scooting in the chair, sit to stand, etc., use the lift to get them into the chair or the edge of the bed. Perform the other tasks that need to be done, then work backwards from sitting to supine. Example: Work on sitting to right elbow weight bearing and back up again. If the patient does well, do that and add bringing one leg on the bed. This way, you can actually work on training the components and not just doing it all for them because they can't. You can also use standing lifts in similar ways. Lifts can be very helpful to our treatments. If your patients aren't able to complete a task, we obviously want to address those tasks. There is a way to incorporate the use of equipment into daily treatments. Creativity is the key. www.safeliftingportal.com<http://www.safeliftingportal.com> has great information and articles. Robyn Holland, PT, GCS Therapy Manager, Acute Care Therapy-South Health Robyn.Holland@... Phone: __________ Health - a Top 100 Integrated Health Care Network COXHEALTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 Zero lift policies are a little misleading. Even when using lifts correctly, you still have to lift a bit. I use lifts in my treatments in acute care very often. They HELP my treatments be more skilled and safe for both the patient, me, my tech, and it is a good example for the nursing staff. Examples of patient scenarios: Very debilitated patient in ICU: hasn't walked or been out of bed in a week. Dialysis, heart issues, etc: Unable to perform AROM BLE. Able to activate muscles, but not able to complete even partial ROM unassisted. I used the ceiling lift with a positioning sling (size of the bed with 5 loops on either side) to assist rolling. I just hooked up one side of the sling. He could initiate rolling, but needed help, so I had him initiate rolling, lifted him a bit with the lift, and had him finish rolling. We did this for a few reps. Completely wore him out. This is a much better option than me man handling him. I was able to keep my hands free to facilitate and cue. Also, I didn't need a tech. Had he been strong enough to sit on the edge of the bed, I would have used the same lift to sit him (not 2 people total assist), then I could have worked on sitting balance. (Could have also used a floor (hoyer type) lift to so the same task. Bariatric patient: couldn't lift legs due to mass of pannus. Did the same rolling task with this patient. Able to clean him up with 1-2 staff members, not 4-6. Patient was unable to bridge due his size and weight of his pannus. I used the positioning sling loops under his bottom and lifted his rear off the bed enough to get his feet on the bed in hooklying. From this position, he was able to initiate a bridge, needed help from the lift to finish it, but without the lift, he would not have been able to do this at all. Also, hooked up the leg lifter sling to the lift with the sling under his pannus. Lifted the pannus enough for the patient to actually perform AROM to his legs to about 80 degrees flexion. He had not been able to bend them that far in supine due to his pannus. Some patients have a very hard time with supine to sit. That is sometimes the hardest transfer during a treatment session. If your patient also needs to work on sitting balance, scooting in the chair, sit to stand, etc., use the lift to get them into the chair or the edge of the bed. Perform the other tasks that need to be done, then work backwards from sitting to supine. Example: Work on sitting to right elbow weight bearing and back up again. If the patient does well, do that and add bringing one leg on the bed. This way, you can actually work on training the components and not just doing it all for them because they can't. You can also use standing lifts in similar ways. Lifts can be very helpful to our treatments. If your patients aren't able to complete a task, we obviously want to address those tasks. There is a way to incorporate the use of equipment into daily treatments. Creativity is the key. www.safeliftingportal.com<http://www.safeliftingportal.com> has great information and articles. Robyn Holland, PT, GCS Therapy Manager, Acute Care Therapy-South Health Robyn.Holland@... Phone: __________ Health - a Top 100 Integrated Health Care Network COXHEALTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.