Safe lifting and moving in health care: partners in Success

What We Can Learn From Injured Workers About

Preventing Injuries

Jean Eichenberger, MS, RNUniversity of Illinois Hospital

November 15, 2012

About the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System

•Conveniently located just southwest of Chicago’s downtown

•495 bed tertiary care hospital

•Out-patient and specialty clinics

•Seven health science colleges including the College of Medicine

As a leader in patient care, research and education, UI Health is committed to making positive and lasting differences in health

science and in people’s lives.

Why do Healthcare Workers get Injured?

•Number of lateral transfers per day…………231

•Number of patients being repositioned per day……..138

On average, patients are repositioned 12 times per 24 hour period

Extensive and total assist patients are transferred at least 5 times per day to and from toilet, bed, chair, and laterally

3

Overall Mobility Level

Total Weight

•Average Patient Weight………………………..180 lbs

•Number of repositioning tasks per year……….604,440

•Weight repositioned per year………………108,799,200

•Adding in the transfers and the total weight being repositioned and transferred per year…….123,975,900

•That’s nearly 62 thousand tons per year!

5

Bariatric Patients

•Annual estimate of patients over 500#............13

•Annual estimate of patients over 700#..............1

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What are our Incidents?

•~ 40% exposures and 60% injuries

•Top Injury Categories • 14.5% …………slip/trip• 8.39% ………….struck by• 7.5% …………...lifting• 7.26% ………….patient handling• 4.63% ………….struck against• 4.63% ………….push/pull

By Unit/Department

By Job Class/Title

By Diagnosis

Definitions of SPH Classification

•“Transfer” – refers to making lateral transfers, moving from bed to chair, toilet to stand;

•“Reposition” – refers to action of pulling patient up in bed, log-rolling patient in bed, repositioning limbs;

•“Push-pull” – refers to motion of pushing or pulling wheelchair, bed and/or other equipment WITH patient present;

•“Fall Intervention” – refers to “catching a fall”, assisting patient to floor when falling;

By Activity Type

Return To Work Program

•Definition: method to help injured workers get back to work by providing them with temporary, modified jobs that take into consideration physical restrictions, skills, interests and capabilities.

RTW Program Goals

•Return partially disabled workers to work

•Prevent permanent partial disability cases

•Reduce hidden, uninsurable costs

•Reduce insurance costs by reducing lost time

•Save the careers of good workers

•Improve morale

Benefits To The Employee•A

llows the employee to return to the job-site, and thus protect their income, career, and working relationships

•Protects the employee from developing habits that can lead to long absences from the workplace

•Permits the employee to return to the job-site during the rehabilitation period

•Allows the employee to maintain self confidence

Benefits To The Employer•I

mproves employee morale when there is a commitment to the injured worker’s well-being

•Reduces the cost of workers’ compensation insurance by decreasing lost time days

•Increased productivity in the workforce

•Assists in the reduction of employer’s indirect expenses such as hiring and training of new employees

RTW Modifications•A

lternate assignment: return to a different existing job within the functional capacity assigned by the physician

•Restricted work: return to regular job with accommodations as assigned by the physician, e.g. lifting restriction.

•Modified duty or total accommodation: positions are specifically created to accommodate restrictions of injured worker

•Modified Work Hours: any of the above accommodations applying reduced hours, graduating to full time

Lessons Learned

•M

anagement buy-in is critical

•C

ultures change slowly, but they do change

•A

dvocate for the employee

•P

arking, paycheck, performance

•B

e creative!