Patient lifts typically come in the form of mechanical lift equipment used to get patients up from the floor following a fall. Generally, when a healthcare worker wants to safely transfer a patient horizontally or vertically, the worker will frequently ask somebody to bring a “patient lift”.

Mounting concerns over the hazards associated with physically lifting and handling patients resulted in the release of “National Standards for Interprofessionals” this June. A sample of these important standards can be reviewed at Nursing World.

As a health care professional working with the elderly and/or disabled, you are very aware of the problems inherent in lifting patients. At the Safe Patient Handling Conference held in San Diego in September, 2010 and again in 2011, this important subject was brought into focus.