Does rare use of assistive devices during patient handling increase the risk of low back pain? A prospective cohort study among female healthcare workers

Holtermann, Andreas; Clausen, Thomas; Jørgensen, Marie Birk; Aust, Birgit; Mortensen, Ole Steen; Burdorf, Alex; Fallentin, Nils; Andersen, Lars L.

doi:10.1007/s00420-014-0963-4

Cited by 16 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Technical patient handling aids, also known as mechanical assistive devices, can reduce the number of manual patient lifts required. The resulting decrease in lifting forces experienced by health care workers during patient handling can help to prevent complaints and disorders due to overloading [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ]. Therefore, the German Social Accident Insurance Institution for the Health and Welfare Service (Berufsgenossenschaft für Gesundheitsdienst und Wohlfahrtspflege (BGW)) [ 35 ] recommends the use of patient lifting devices to prevent physical workload while handling patients.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Technical Aids for Patient Handling Prevent Musculoskeletal Complaints in Health Care Workers?—A Systematic Review of Intervention Studies

Hegewald

Berge

Heinrich

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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The physical load ensuing from the repositioning and moving of patients puts health care workers at risk of musculoskeletal complaints. Technical equipment developed to aid with patient handling should reduce physical strain and workload; however, the efficacy of these aids in preventing musculoskeletal disorders and complaints is still unclear. A systematic review of controlled intervention studies was conducted to examine if the risk of musculoskeletal complaints and disorders is reduced by technical patient handling equipment. MEDLINE®/PubMed®, EMBASE®, Allied and Complementary Medicine Database (AMED), and Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL®) were searched using terms for nursing, caregiving, technical aids, musculoskeletal injuries, and complaints. Randomized controlled trials and controlled before-after studies of interventions including technical patient handling equipment were included. The titles and abstracts of 9554 publications and 97 full-texts were screened by two reviewers. The qualitative synthesis included one randomized controlled trial (RCT) and ten controlled before-after studies. A meta-analysis of four studies resulted in a pooled risk ratio for musculoskeletal injury claims (post-intervention) of 0.78 (95% confidence interval 0.68–0.90). Overall, the methodological quality of the studies was poor and the results often based on administrative injury claim data, introducing potential selection bias. Interventions with technical patient handling aids appear to prevent musculoskeletal complaints, but the certainty of the evidence according to GRADE approach ranged from low to very low.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Technical Aids for Patient Handling Prevent Musculoskeletal Complaints in Health Care Workers?—A Systematic Review of Intervention Studies

Hegewald

Berge

Heinrich

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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“…In general, however, a reduction in lost workdays due to injury was also found with ergonomic programme implementation [15,16,18,51], as were reductions in injury-related costs [16,51]. The quality of the study evidence overall is not high; some are small [13,14,41], not randomised [4,16,42,46,49,52], or lacking appropriate controls [4,12,16,17,45,49,50], or include other factors which may have an influence on the study result [44,48,51]. Table 1.…”

Section: In Relation To Healthcare Workers: Ergonomic Devices And/or mentioning

confidence: 96%

“…The number of lost workdays due to injury was also generally reduced with introduction of ergonomic devices [7,43,45], as were costs associated with patient handling-related injury [45]. Use of ergonomic devices was also associated with reduced awkward back posture incidence and duration [46], safer patient transfers [47], and reduced risk of infrequent lower back pain [48]. Burdorf et al reported, however, that even the best scenario only showed a maximal reduction of 14% in lower back pain prevalence, while the projection from this analysis was that complete elimination of manual patient lifting would reduce lower back pain by 10.5% [43].…”

Section: In Relation To Healthcare Workers: Ergonomic Devices And/or mentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Importance of Safe Patient Handling to Create a Culture of Safety: An Evidential Review

Humrickhouse¹,

Knibbe²

2016

Open Ergonomics. J.

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Abstract:Manual patient handling has been linked to musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in healthcare workers. It can expose the musculoskeletal (MS) system of nurses and other healthcare workers to stress, and may put patients at risk for injury, pain and negative health outcomes. Creating a culture of safety around minimising manual patient handling is therefore thought to have a positive impact in diminishing the scope of this problem. Patient mobility is also an important clinical issue, and safe patient handling (SPH) and mobility technology can be used to promote mobilisation, to improve patient independence and quality of life.There is evidence to suggest that multifactor interventions based on a risk assessment programme have the most likely chance of success in reducing risk factors associated with patient handling activities. The introduction of a structured SPH programme that pairs training with ergonomic intervention and mechanical aid use is now believed to be the most effective workplace intervention to prevent injuries relating to manual patient handling. The aim of this review is to investigate available evidence for the effectiveness of SPH programmes from the perspectives of healthcare worker safety, patient safety and cost. It is hoped that this will provide a broad view on the current state, significance and future potential of such programmes. Further, we consider what is missing from the available evidence, and how we can improve our understanding of SPH programme effectiveness in the healthcare setting.

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“…Following this, some of the most promising interventions aiming to reduce the physical load among healthcare workers seem to be the ones focusing on decreasing the frequency and/or intensity of manual lifting [25][26][27][28][29]. This is often and most successfully done by increasing the use of assistive devices during patient transfers, as previous studies have reported associations between frequent use and lower risk of back injury and MSDs [30][31][32]. However, it is currently unknown whether this effect is mainly due to single/specific assistive devices or if it is related to the consistent use of a combination of assistive devices.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Physical Exposure during Patient Transfer and Risk of Back Injury & Low-back Pain: Prospective Cohort Study

Vinstrup

Jakobsen

Madeleine

et al. 2020

Preprint

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BackgroundWork-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are more common among healthcare workers compared with most other professions. Because frequent patient transfer has been associated with increased risk of MSDs, we aim to quantify the physical load associated with commonly used assistive devices and to investigate associations between accumulated physical exposure during patient transfer and risk of MSDs.MethodsBy applying an exposure matrix based on measure¬ments of electromyography and trunk flexion on a large (n=1285) prospective cohort, intensity of low-back pain (LBP) and risk of back injury at 1-year follow-up were modelled using a linear model and logistic regressions, respectively. The cohort was divided into groups based on physical exposure; i.e. low (1st quartile), moderate (2nd and 3rd quartiles) and high (4th quartile) exposure.ResultsExposure profiles are provided for 9 groups of assistive devices, with ceiling lifts and intelligent beds eliciting the lowest physical exposure. In the fully-adjusted model, we report differences in LBP intensity at follow-up between the low and moderate exposure groups (p=0.0085). No differ-ence was found between the moderate and high exposure groups (p=0.2967). Likewise, we find no associations between physical exposure and risk of back injury at 1-year follow-up, with a prevalence of 11%, 13% and 11% for the three groups, respectively. ConclusionsLow physical exposure during patient transfer was prospectively associated with lower intensity of LBP. Consistent use of assistive devices associ¬ated with low physical exposure, namely ceiling-lifts and intelligent beds, may play a role in reducing the prevalence of MSDs among healthcare workers.

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Does rare use of assistive devices during patient handling increase the risk of low back pain? A prospective cohort study among female healthcare workers

Abstract: The study indicates that rare use of assistive devices can increase the risk for developing infrequent LBP in female healthcare workers reporting to be free from LBP at baseline.

Cited by 16 publications

References 23 publications

Do Technical Aids for Patient Handling Prevent Musculoskeletal Complaints in Health Care Workers?—A Systematic Review of Intervention Studies

Do Technical Aids for Patient Handling Prevent Musculoskeletal Complaints in Health Care Workers?—A Systematic Review of Intervention Studies

The Importance of Safe Patient Handling to Create a Culture of Safety: An Evidential Review

Physical Exposure during Patient Transfer and Risk of Back Injury & Low-back Pain: Prospective Cohort Study

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Does rare use of assistive devices during patient handling increase the risk of low back pain? A prospective cohort study among female healthcare workers

Abstract: The study indicates that rare use of assistive devices can increase the risk for developing infrequent LBP in female healthcare workers reporting to be free from LBP at baseline.

Cited by 16 publications

References 23 publications

Do Technical Aids for Patient Handling Prevent Musculoskeletal Complaints in Health Care Workers?—A Systematic Review of Intervention Studies

Do Technical Aids for Patient Handling Prevent Musculoskeletal Complaints in Health Care Workers?—A Systematic Review of Intervention Studies

The Importance of Safe Patient Handling to Create a Culture of Safety: An Evidential Review

Physical Exposure during Patient Transfer and Risk of Back Injury &amp; Low-back Pain: Prospective Cohort Study

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Physical Exposure during Patient Transfer and Risk of Back Injury & Low-back Pain: Prospective Cohort Study