Lifting, transferring and repositioning patients manually is dangerous work. It leaves health care professionals vulnerable to disabling musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and patients at risk of injuries that can complicate their underlying health problems. A recent bill reintroduced in the United States House of Representatives aims at reducing the risks. It’s not the first safe patient handling bill in the nation, but if passed, it will have the most far-reaching benefits.
US Representative John Conyers, Jr., D-Michigan District 14, has re-introduced legislation for a national Safe Patient Handling law. Originally introduced as HR 6182 on September 26, 2006, it was reintroduced as HR 378 on January 10, 2007.
Anne Hudson, RN, BSN, Director of the Work Injured Nurses’ Group (WING USA), tracks legislative efforts related to safe patient handling. She sends out regular updates to readers, and forwarded the text of the reintroduced legislation to The Ergonomics Report
This article originally appeared in The Ergonomics Report™ on 2007-01-22.