Lifting patients at Roswell Park takes on new heights


By DEBORAH A. MILES Roswell Park Cancer Institute in


Buffalo has earned a highly respected reputation for cancer research and treatments. The hospital is also becoming a frontrunner in its endeavors to create safer worksites. In May, Roswell’s new intensive care unit (ICU) opened with state-of-the- art ceiling lifts. PEF member April Meyer, the ICU nurse administrator, said, “I’ve had people out, including myself, with back injuries. The ceiling


lifts will help reduce the amount of injuries sustained. Even if you are lifting correctly, you can still get hurt


without a lift.” Meyer said the new lifts are designed


for heavier people, but also will make lifting any patient much easier. The ICU unit has 14 rooms equipped with ceiling lifts, but only 10 of the rooms are being used for patients at this time. “The lifts will help make patients more


comfortable, and in the future they will be used to help those who have difficulty getting up and standing. Now we use portable lifts, but the new ceiling lifts will eventually become routine,” Meyer said. Reducing staff injuries and handling


patients in the safest way possible is a part of Roswell’s philosophy. Karen Rabent, an occupational therapy


assistant, is on Roswell’s safe-patient- handling committee. She attended a conference in Florida three years ago and came back armed with information on equipment and lifts. “The rehabilitation department


purchased several new pieces of equipment,” Rabent said. “The Apex stand aid is the one we use most. It’s for someone with upper-body strength but who has weak legs and could possibly buckle at the knees. We received it a year ago, and it is so well used, we purchased two more.” Another widely


used piece of equipment is the friction-reducing device sheet. Rabent said the


sheet is placed under a patient who has to be moved laterally or boosted up in bed. It reduces friction, and reduces back strain on the staff. “It’s almost like sliding a patient, and


it’s much easier,” she said. “After a while, physically moving patients takes its toll on staff.” Most injuries occur from slips, trips


and falls, and many injuries in the hospital occur in little bathrooms, for both patients and staff. “The bathrooms are small,” Rabent


said. “A lot of times a patient can’t get up because the toilet is too low. Now we have lifts available to help in that area as well as getting out of bed.” Rabent was referring to the EZ stand


which aids patients to get up from the edge of a bed. “The ‘camel’ is the newest piece of


equipment in the rehabilitation department. It can literally lift someone off the floor, so staff is not involved in bending or any heavy lifting,” she said. “Advances in safe-patient-handling


equipment are making the role much easier for health care providers. The Roswell staff works to maintain an environment that reduces the caregiver’s risk of back and other musculoskeletal injury,” Rabent said. “My suggestion to anyone, whether in a hospital setting or caring for a patient at home, is not to use your body. Our bodies are not meant to lift anything over 35 pounds.”


NICEAND EASY—Karen Rabent demonstrates how easy it is to inflate the newest piece of safe-patient-handling equipment called the “camel,” used at Roswell Park Cancer Institute.


—Photo by Kevin Tate


Clock is ticking to register for golf tournament Golfers who wish to participate in the 3rd


Annual Lou Matrazzo Golf Tournament have until June 29 to register. The event will be held Thursday, July 19, at


the Mohawk River Country Club in Rexford, Saratoga County. Golf day sign-up begins at 7:30 a.m. with a


four-person scramble shotgun start at 8:30 a.m. There must be at least one PEF member per foursome. The event also will include contests, raffles and awards. The cost is $90 and includes green fees, a golf cart, lunch at the turn and a dinner buffet. The


Page 12—The Communicator June 2012


cost to attend just the dinner is $35. Registration will be accepted on a first-come,


first-served basis. A completed registration form and check for the full amount payable to “Annual Lou Matrazzo Golf Tournament” should be mailed to NYSPEF, Rachel Mango, PO Box 12414, Albany, NY 12212. For more information, email rmango@pef.org.


To make a donation or become a sponsor, send an email to lpulver@pef.org. All proceeds from the tournament will be donated to the American Cancer Society.


—Deborah A. Miles PEF Information Line: 1-800-553-2445


NURSES STATION


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24