![]() One advantage of lifting sheets over scoop stretchers is their flexibility. Your cot won’t fit into the front door – let alone down the hallway to the patient’s room – so you need to think of something else: a lifting sheet. You attempt treatment, but don’t get the results that you were anticipating, so you decide that it’s time to begin transporting. You find the patient with snoring respirations and lying on their bed. Imagine your crew having to carry a hypoglycemic patient to the outside of a single-story residence. Lifting sheets and scoop stretchersĭisposable lifting sheets have entered the market within the past couple of decades and serve a greater purpose than solely aiding in the lifting/movement of obese patients – they can be used for any patient. as well as when it’s time to think of a plan B (switching to another device). Focusing a bit on the use of brawn, a key component in this direction is also knowing your limitations. Keeping your joints bent, body close and using straight and smooth motions (rather than twisting, jerking motions) can improve both your use of strength and ergonomic techniques. Even when a commercial device isn’t available, performing a two-person carry by having one provider approaching from behind the patient to lift their torso, while the other is lifting the patient’s legs, still can be done in a fairly safe manner (provided we effectively communicate in the process, too). ![]() While the fireman’s carry isn’t an ideal option, utilizing some sort of a commercial device with grab handles and clips certainly is (or even your KED board). using direct (wo)manpower and critical thinking to safely, ergonomically, lift and carry patients is still a viable option. The combination of brain and brawn is important here. Training day: Disaster response, transporting patients from the scene So, if lifting and moving a patient out of their second story bedroom, basement den or even a four-step porch isn’t supposed to be done on a cot, then what other options do we have to accomplish this task safely? ![]() In fact, even though many are battery-powered and auto-lifting, they’re still designed to have at least one provider at both the patient’s head and feet ends to help to guide the cot higher and/or lower (not just simply press a button and let the machine do the work). ![]() They’re designed to securely transport a patient from point A to point B, with attendants guiding their movement – and not at a fully-extended loading height, either. EMS cots aren’t designed to be lifted or carried. Despite our best efforts to make these pieces of equipment perform the same tasks as the prior silver frame relatives of their past, it’s time that we (as providers) adapt to keep the same premise in mind as their manufacturers do. there’s no doubt that the battery-operated, power-lifting, color-friendly, and all-but 4-wheel drive capabilities of these staple items in our industry have gained some weight over the past decade. Call it a cot, stretcher, gurney (or even a pram).
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