The care of a patient or a resident for the nursing care staff is often very strenuous and stressful. This strain often manifests itself in damage due to overload, such as back and neck problems. It is important to always consider some basic principles that can reduce the strain on the body to a minimum. For example:
• Use as many tools as possible, such as a heightadjustable bed or a sliding mat.
• Ensure sufficient (movement) space
• Let the patient or resident help you as much as possible without straining them too much
In our series „Ergonomic work in nursing professions“ we describe some basic movements of the nursing routine, in which these basic principles are considered as far as possible.
Today we deal with raising a seated resident with support:
Preparation for nursing staff
• A towel is placed under the resident’s thighs
• The towel is seized by both nursing staffs close to the resident
• The nursing staffs take a firm stand laterally to the chair
• The back stays straight – the view goes forward
Raising the resident
• The resident is slightly bent forward and the nursing staffs hook in under the crook of the resident’s arm
• The nursing staffs slowly stretch their legs until the resident is upright
• The nursing staffs slowly squat down again until the resident is sitting on the chair again – their backs remain straight
Here are all steps in a video:
