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Now is the time to make a change to dramatically reduce nurse injuries risks using the SPH Medical Air Transfer Systems.

SPU Breathable Air Transfer Mattress reduces nurse injuries
Categoriesair transfer systems

Protecting the Protectors: Risk Reduction for Nurses with the SPH Air Mattress

by sphmedicaladmin

Every single day, health care workers around the world devote their time, their efforts, and their passion towards helping others to heal. They are caring for those in need of medical attention, and protecting patients from further injury. But what are we doing to help risk reduction for Nurses and health care workers?

Risk Reduction for Nurses

For those of us that do not work in a healthcare setting, it is so easy to take for granted the seemingly simplistic tasks health care professionals must undertake on a daily basis. But it is these very routine, common demands that present our nation’s RNs with the greatest risk for nursing injury.

In 2016, a study conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor found that over 50% of all injuries sustained by registered nurses involved a repositioning injury caused by overexertion or by improper lifting techniques, resulting in strains, sprains, and tears.

The fast-paced nature of the healthcare profession often sees registered nurses moving quickly and efficiently, but also in a position where the daily demands see them completing tasks without any support. One of the most prevalent risks faced by this community of public servants involves something as seemingly simple as moving their patients. On the surface, this task may appear as simple as it is mundane, but after carefully considering not only the frequency with which nurses must move their patients throughout each day, the sheer number of times they are required to do this each week within a hospital setting, in addition to the lack of support typically received by each nurse each time they are tasked with moving or adjusting a patient, it is absolutely no wonder that this activity is the #1 cause of injuries sustained by nurses on the job.

Fortunately, technology has come a long way in the development of safety protocols and in reducing risk factors faced by nurses every single day. The gold standard of the health care industry in completing patient transfers is the SPH Medical Air Powered Lateral Transfer System. This product allows healthcare professionals to move patients, to transfer them from one bed to another, or to adjust them in bed without exposure to all the risk-factors historically present while moving patients in a healthcare setting. The SPH Medical Air Transfer & Positioning System also offers medical facilities the following benefits:

  1. Enhanced Infection Prevention; SPU Transfer Mat reduces risk of cross contamination of deadly pathogens between equipment and people
  2. Single-use application ensures availability to RNs within their unit (*no laundry issues)
  3. Ease of use for healthcare providers—accessibility & inventory management
  4. Cost-effective product for medical institutions
  5. Maximize patient comfort and enhance experience during transfer
  6. Minimizes risk of injury to nurses during transfers and while moving or repositioning patients
  7. Means of streamlining a universal methodology of safe patient practices.
  8. Improved nursing safety and satisfaction when assistive devices are available = nurse retention

Historically speaking, the days of once having to pull a patient from a bed over to a gurney using a draw sheet or sliding board are, and should be, long gone. These methods are hazardous to medical staff, as they simply do not reduce the friction enough to make it safe.

Protecting the Protectors with an Air Powered Lateral Transfer System

Although products such as the Hovermatt and Stryker Glide to provide similar ease of transfer, the SPH Medical Air Powered Lateral Transfer System has been recommended by hospitals and nurses alike for all adult patients having to be transferred off the OR Table post-surgery in reducing the risk of injury for staff while also maximizing patient comfort and care. This system creates a thin cushion of air underneath an inflated mattress that reduces friction and helps staff ‘float’ patients from one surface to another.

The same systems can also be utilized to reposition patients up in their beds, addressing the other very-high risk task of ‘in bed repositioning’ or ‘boosting’ a patient. Once a manual task that required two nurses to take hold of a patient’s bed sheet and together lift the patient into position, the SPH Medical Air Transfer and Positioning System mattress is breathable and can stay underneath patients and be used to boost them up in bed.

Of all the products available, by far the gold standard of the medical field when it comes to transfers is the SPH Medical Air Powered Lateral Transfer System. This premier, industry-leading tool minimizes cross-contamination by being single-use while also ensuring that nurses have the products that they need to perform routine tasks without the risk of injury. Nurses and Health Care Workers around the world dedicate their lives to improving the lives of those around them. Using the SPH Medical Lateral Transfer Systems are one way we can reciprocate their care, compassion, and concern and help with risk reduction for Nurses and Caregivers.

Categoriesair transfer systems

Air Assisted Transfer System Makes an Immediate Impact on Injury Rates

by sphmedicaladmin

Obesity rates are increasing at an alarming rate, with over 42% of adults in the morbidly obese spectrum. This increase in weight nationally causes a direct strain in healthcare industry, where healthcare workers’ risk of injury while at work increases significantly. An air assisted transfer system makes an immediate impact on injury rates and accidents. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that nurses, attendants, orderlies, and nursing attendants call for more sick days due to occupational injury, especially during in bed repositioning of patients in the ICU.

Dangers to caregivers

Nurses have highlighted the challenges of caring for morbidly obese patients but the problem does not lie with just the larger patients.  The old fashioned manual lifting, moving, pushing, pulling and supporting patients is taking a the toll on nurses back, hips, and shoulders.  Many have expressed the need to implement a safe patient handling program to reduce injuries.  A survey conducted showed that in 12 months, 21% of all reported injuries were directly linked to caring for a patient of size. Most of the survey respondents were quick to complain about shoulder discomfort, strain and pain in their back area for up to 24 hours after transferring patients to bariatric beds. Serious injuries have resulted in up to 12 % of nurses to leaving the workforce yearly, many are older experienced nurses that we can’t afford to have leave.  With a nursing shortage continuing to plague the healthcare sector and injury rates persisting, many states took action and began enacting healthcare worker protection laws.

The National Institute of Health reports that healthcare workers are five times more likely to experience injuries than in other occupations.  Today, state and national legislation is driving the adoption of Safe Patient Handling principles into everyday patient care.  Organizations like the ANA American Nurses Association, AORN, Mobility Matters, ASPHP and others all support the integration of Safe Patient Handling and an air assisted transfer system into nursing and physical therapy practices.

Patient safety

Patients of all sizes also risk injury when being moved or mobilized. as data shows there are countless near misses that always place both health care workers and patients on edge. Worse still, traditional systems to move the patients usually need two or more staff members to transfer the patients. The high rates of injuries reported by nurses increase the need for the recruitment of nurses at all times. Other patients feel the gap as more staff attend to one patient, leaving other areas lacking, making the patient-to-nurse gap even larger. Still, morbidly obese harnessing equipment for patients after surgery can cause harm leaving nurses feeling the situation is out of control.

The movement in itself may tear stitches, or the equipment may fail, causing injury to the patient, elongating the healing period, which may further increase when moving them again. Still, nurses cannot determine the right positioning of the patient due to the large mass, making it harder to safely secure them, leaving them to judge if the patient’s body is adequately resting. Unfortunately for the patients, no blame is on the nurses if an accident occurs. Although the patient’s care is on them, they cannot satisfactorily handle their duties due to the lack of technology.

Facilities and equipment

The first step to minimizing injury rates in nurses has been recognizing and monitoring near-miss situations. It has led to medical facilities devising safety measures to aid nurses, leading to purchasing specialized equipment for better repositioning up in bed. The good news is that those safe patient handling programs work. New hospitals are at the forefront of installing ceiling lifts for easy access and use of safety equipment. Older hospitals work to have the equipment fitted into the facilities. The problem arising is that they cannot be installed in many hospital areas.

Affordability is also an issue in many facilities. The special equipment for a standard bariatric room costs above $55,000, which is extremely high than a standard bed constant of $12,000 for a ceiling lift. Early investment is recommended. Still, mobile lifts are often ignored in most facilities, and the most preferred option is the Air Transfer system. It works to get morbid obese patients from the bed to the CT table, the OR table, and the gurney. Its portability ensures that it moves with the patient and nurses, reducing the risk of injury to both parties, especially when repositioning a patient in bed. Its popularity peaks as its breathable material makes it possible to stay under the patient for their entire length of stay, allowing nurses to reposition, boost, turn or transfer to a stretcher for a test or  surgery. Infection prevention is enhanced as the Single Patient use air transfer mattress is disposable and used only per patient.

The challenge

Nurses have a new challenge of using specialized equipment. Some nurses say they have no time to use the equipment due to the patient care workload they face on certain inpatient units.  Typical excuses are looking for the equipment takes too long, the lifts needing setting up, we’re always missing slings due to laundry, or it takes up to three or more caregivers to perform a certain task which takes too long.  Nurses agree that they prefer simple equipment that takes time to set up, like the air transfer mattress. Still, in many facilities, there are storage issues and the mobile lifts take up too much space.  Nurses find that the Air Transfer System is much easier to store and make available on the unit.  When the appropriate equipment is not available or accessible to nurses they are forced to continue to lift patients manually.  and have no place to complain as the equipment is already within the hospital facility; it is just inaccessible.  Hospital administrators are seeing the benefits of reduced workers compensation costs, a reduction in lost and modified duty days and an overall improvement in staff safety and morale when the appropriate safety equipment is made available on each and every nursing unit.  The conclusion from hospitals across the country is that nurses are safer using the air assisted transfer system when caring for morbidly obese patients.

Categoriesair transfer systems

Nurses Select Air Transfer Systems to Improve Safety and Patient Care

by sphmedicaladmin

Nurses Are Becoming Increasingly At Risk For Workplace Injuries

Now more than ever, there is a shortage of nurses. Many older nurses are hitting retirement age, and the COVID virus Pandemic has not been kind to these figures either. More nurses are needed, and fewer are available. This issue is correlating unfortunately well with other directly related topics. Patients are getting much heavier, and States are legislating to mandate safety programs in hospitals. These programs are not a negative factor, but in regards to fewer nurses and more serious patients, more and more injuries are occurring for nurses in the workplace. Nurses are in the top three professions at risk for receiving Musculoskeletal Injuries that are potentially career-ending. The overall objective is safe patient handling while simultaneously minimizing workplace injuries. If nurses could move larger patients without risking injury, it would benefit the nursing shortage as well. Also, if a larger patient is coding, time is a crucial resource. If a nurse doesn’t have to struggle to reposition or transfer a patient, it can potentially be life-saving. This is where the SPH Medical Air Transfer Systems can help save time and resources in a critical situation.

Other Technologies Have Been Used But Remain Limited

There have been other systems and technologies in place. Ceiling lifts were installed in newer hospitals and were retrofitted in several older hospitals. The main concern with this system is mobility. Ceiling lifts are attached to a permanently mounted track that positions a patient inside of a sling. Mobile lifts solve that issue with wheels. They can be very cost-effective, but typically two careers are required when hoisting a patient.

Air Assisted Transfer System

The Air Assisted Transfer System or sometimes referred to as an Air Powered Transfer System, is the preferred technology with nurses. Minimal effort is needed when using these systems to move patients. From bed to gurney, a bed to OR Tables, a bed to x-ray or CT table, the Air-Powered Transfer System is a multifaceted solution. They are highly portable and can be moved with a patient as they are relocated on a stretcher or bed.

How Air Transfer Systems WorksSPH Medical Air Transfer Mat reduces friction

After the patient is securely placed on the mattress, low-pressure air pushed from an air supply will inflate the breathable transfer mattress. The air supply supports the patient comfortably and air escapes perforations in the bottom of the mattress supporting the mattress on a mobile bed of air. This reduces friction and facilitates near-effortless patient transfers. This, in turn, results in caregivers using a significant decrease in physical effort. The air patient transfer system decreases exertion and meets workplace safety guidelines.

The Benefits Push Beyond Mobility And Required Exertion

With a Single Patient Use Transfer Mattress System, there are benefits beyond eliminating injuries within the workspace. Air-assisted technology moves patients with more stability. This, in turn, reduces skin shearing and bruising during transfers. Single Patient Use Air Transfer System also eliminates costs and logistical issues that are associated with reprocessing. During typical situations, this reduces the risk of cross-contamination. During a pandemic like COVID, the benefits exceed even greater. The air-assisted technologies are also MRI compatible and vary style and width, and can accommodate patients that weigh 1000lbs.

Air Transfer Systems Can Be used Anywhere

These systems can be used in any hospital department. This is extremely useful where transfers are common and are a daily occurrence. There are also particular departments where ceiling lifts are too challenging to install. The ICU, MedSurgery, OR, Imaging Department, Transport, and Emergency Rooms are all sectors that could yield massive results from implementing these technologies. Essentially, ANYWHERE lateral patient transfers are made from one surface to another, or frequent repositions are made can benefit from their usage.

SPH Medical Air Transfer System 2021

The Multifaceted Benefits from Using Air Assisted Transfer Systems are Too Great

The results speak for themselves. Right now, this is the premier equipment in safe patient handling. These technologies are an extra pair of hands for our quickly dwindling nurse workforce, allowing more effective utilization of human resources within the bounds of the hospitals. It is also an extra measure of safety, assuring the crew isn’t taking unnecessary risks and potentially receiving musculoskeletal injuries furthering the nursing shortage. This also reduces the direct and indirect cost of these injuries, freeing up hospital budgets thousands to millions of dollars.

They also coincide with the new safety programs being required for hospitals

Other technologies like overhead lifts, mobile lifts, slider boards, and rollerboards have seen their usage, and it is time to move past these outdated technologies. They are particular and are less of an across-the-board solution. The Single Patient Use Transfer Mattress is the best solution for the nurse, the patient, and the hospital for safety, cost-effectiveness. It could make an immediate impact on the various issues surrounding the health care scene.

SPU Breathable Air Transfer Mattress reduces nurse injuries
Categoriesair transfer systems

Reduce Nurse Injuries from Repositioning with Air Transfer Systems

by sphmedicaladmin

Are you a healthcare facility or hospital caring for patients that are total care or dependent patients that require extensive boosting turning and transferring? Are nursing and hospital staff workers continuing to be injured from patient handling tasks with no end in sight? Now is the time to make a change to dramatically reduce nurse injuries risks using the SPH Medical Air Transfer and Positioning System. SPH Medical, a global leader in the area of Safe Patient Handling offers the current gold standard of Air Powered Transfer and Positioning Systems. This SPH Air Transfer Mat uses a cushion of air that flows through the Air Mattress and out through tiny holes on the underside of mattress to virtually eliminate friction on the surface below, resulting in an effortless ability to boost, turn, or transfer a patient.

The SPH Medical Air Transfer and Positioning device is the latest industry leading technology that reduces patient-caregiver risk of injury and improves efficiency. With multiple material types and sizes in a variety of widths and lengths, the SPH Medical Air Transfer Systems is used throughout Medical Centers to address a variety of patient handling tasks.

How it Works

The air-powered Lateral Transfer Device is the manufacturer’s design to address traditional challenges of patient handling posed by existing devices in the market. Its functionality is bent towards reducing injuries to patients and caregivers.

A powered air supply accompanies the SPH Medical Air Transfer Mat and Positioning Systems via a hose. The motor injects air into the mattress from the bottom, which holds the patient gently and delicately. The perforated Mat with tiny air holes that let out air effectively creates air cushioning. This cushion reduces the pressure needed to transfer patients.

With your force cut down by 90%, your typical strain reduces for the caregiver attending numerous patients. Unlike the familiar four caregivers or more needed for some procedures, your patient needs one or two nurses.

Transfer Mattress Materials and Specifications

Air Powered Lateral Transfer Device is made of a nylon twill material with a four-way flex fabric. This durable material comes with an antibacterial coating on the patient’s side.

The standard length of a Single Patient Use Air Transfer Mattress is 78″ with widths of 24″, 28″ 34″, 39″, and 50″. Other features include:

  • The SPH Air Transfer mat is compatible with most air supply or motors already in place
  • A safe working load of 450kg/1000lbs.
  • Enables compliance with Safe Patient Handling policies and programs.
  • Bariatric patients from 700-1000lbs can utilize two motors for maximum friction reduction and airflow.

Benefits of Friction Reducing Devices

  • They are easy to use.
  • Fewer Caregivers Required – You need two caregivers to complete the transfer rather than 3-4.
  • Easy to implement and train staff.
  • Reduction injuries to patients and caregivers, including reduction in severity.
  • Documented reduction in workers compensation costs.
  • It is an efficient tool in managing the caregiver’s time.
  • It is the most comfortable and safest transfer method for all patients.
  • Its material is machine washable and dry-able.
  • Economical and cost-effective
  • Significant improvement in staff efficiency and morale.
  • SPU Air Transfer and Positioning offers enhanced infection control.

A Consideration for success:

The SPH Medical Air Transfer System Air Supply and Mattress must be accessible and available. Ensure that the system components are stored locally on the unit so that staff have ready access to them. Include Housekeeping and Environmental Services in your Safe Patient Handling program to ensure that beds are made with the Single Patient Use transfer Mattress so it is available for immediate use. This removes a major step in the process so nurses don’t have to turn a patient to get the Air Transfer Mattress underneath the patient!

Who Should Buy a Single Patient Use Air Transfer Systems

Whether you are a Nurse Leader, Rehab Director, Surgeon, or Imaging Tech, you want to see Safe Patient Handling best practices being used throughout your facility especially on the total care patients that can’t move themselves. For this reason, we recommend that the following areas should consider having access to the SPH Medical Air Transfer and Positioning System.

  • Hospitals with Medical Units and Intensive Care Units
  • Any inpatient unit that has dependent bed-bound patients
  • Health care facilities with MRI, CT, and Radiology departments
  • Surgery Departments
  • Nursing facilities and palliative caregivers
  • Spinal Centers
  • Ambulance service providers

Varieties of Air Powered Lateral Transfer Devices

The SPH Medical Air Transfer Mat is available in two material types:

Single Patient Use Transfer Mats. This Single Patient Use version is designed to be used during a patients’ entire length of stay and is then disposed of. Assigning a Mat to a single patient ensures that there is no cross-contamination between patients. The Single Patient Use version is similar in design and performance to the launderable or reusable version except that it will not be laundered.

A few key benefits of the Single Patient Use Air Transfer Mat version are breathability and inventory management. The material and construction of the Air Transfer Mat allow moisture to be transmitted through the Mat so that the Mat can remain under patients for prolonged periods. Breathability is a key advantage for the SPH Medical Air Transfer Mat which makes this technology readily accessible to nurses when boosting, turning, or transferring is required. When ordering the Single Patient Use version the inventory and availability of the SPU Air Transfer Mat is easily managed. Weekly and Monthly ordering follows and therefore tracks actual usage which documents that risk avoidance has occurred.

Reusable Transfer Mats. The reusable Air Transfer Mats are washable and include a one-year warranty and will generally be used for many years. Hospitals must consider the cleaning and disinfection of the the SPH Medical Air Transfer Mat between patients to reduce the risk of infections. The laundry process should be evaluated to determine how many reusable Air Transfer Mat’s you will need to meet all the daily patient repositioning and transfer tasks that will take place. Laundry system turnaround plays a key factor in determining inventory needs.

Other Repositioning Alternatives

You will find other devices in the market such as:

  1. Repositioning Sheets
  2. Slide Sheets
  3. Tube Style Slide Sheets
  4. Draw Sheet
  5. RollerSlide
  6. EasyGlide Ovals

While these alternatives have their share of use in the Patient Handling procedures, SPH Medical’s Air-Assisted Transfer and Positioning System is highly preferred by caregivers. This preference is due to the myriad of ergonomic advantages listed earlier. SPH Medical offers this proven technology to boost, turn, or transfer patients safely and efficiently improving patient throughput in busy hospital departments like surgery and imaging.

How to buy the Air Transfer and Positioning System

At SPH Medical, we offer you the latest Air Transfer and Positioning System to maximize safety for both the patient and the caregiver. The Single Patient Use Air Transfer Mattress is your go to solution for rapid reduction in workplace injuries and offers you measurable benefits in patient comfort, staff and patient safety, time management, and ease of use.
For more information about the SPH Medical Air Transfer and Positioning System and to discuss the cost savings impact to your organization, please contact us.

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