She agreed to TRY the lift. She tried it, says it's hurts and she wants to go back to being transferred by 2 CNAs. Nursing home now refuses to do transfers any way other than the lift. She hasn't had a bath in 2 weeks because neither side will budge. What is the law in this situation?
For now, Carol can be bathed in bed - not a bath, but fine for hygiene purposes if it's done properly.
But speaking of done properly, in a perfect world I should have liked to observe the trial transfer with the lift. What hurt, exactly, did she say? What bit of her, and what was causing the hurt?
Old bones and unfamiliar movements could mean that the 'hurt' was nothing worse than mild discomfort that a person could be encouraged to skip over or even just get used to for the greater pleasure of a nice bath.
But. Those strong straps' edges burn if they're accidentally pulled across skin. If the sling isn't carefully positioned, the person can be skewed sideways on being raised, which could be really unpleasant for an arthritic back and hips. Neurotic amateurs (who me?) may have hours to spend aligning every conceivable moving part and double checking every inch of skin, but CNAs on a tight schedule - and especially CNAs talking to each other instead of looking what they're doing - don't. Speed and efficiency are the name of the game.
Now. You obviously cannot march in there and demand to verify the skills and performance of any CNA who might have contact with Carol.
I wonder if you might suggest that Carol is encouraged to give it another try, on the strict condition that a PT or senior staff member is present to see where "Carol's" - cough-cough - difficulty is.
Being placed in a sling, whooped up into the air, dangled and plonked down again is a bit more excitement than an elderly person necessarily likes, and yes it does take a bit of getting used to. But it *shouldn't* hurt. And if it did, there's something wrong. I should work on the NH to investigate more closely.
Please encourage Carol to try the Hoyer lift again and have a nurse manager supervise this transfer so that she/he can make sure that the Hoyer lift is being used properly and that the sling fits Carol as comfortably as possible.
Having worked 20+ years in nursing homes where there were few Hoyer lifts and no "Sit-to-Stand" or "Easy-Stand" mechanical devices, I can tell you plenty of stories of transfers that "went wrong". And many of those "wrong transfers" resulted in injury. As a result of these injuries, I am in constant pain and I cannot lift more than 50 lbs. (a common requirement for most jobs). Do you or Carol want someone to get hurt while transferring Carol? Because that is what might happen if the nursing staff has to transfer Carol without mechanical devices.
There were no problems after we all started using the lift.
occassionally she says it hurts her back, which is painful anyway from compressed vertebrae
previously, mom had at least three "assisted falls" when staff was bathing her when she could still assist with transfers
naturally, observe and make sure her feet are not being bumped or her neck is caught in the sling and then encourage her - a shower would be a treat for her
There is a mesh sling with a commode hole, I used this one to get my Husband into the shower wheelchair to shower him.
After getting him into the shower I would remove the sling and shower him. After the shower I would dry him off and slip the solid split leg sling around him and transfer him to bed so I could put the briefs (tab type not a pull up type) on and then he would either stay in bed or if it was a good day I would transfer him back to the Broda Chair for breakfast.
In addition to the mesh sling and the solid sling with the split leg there is also a solid sling with no split. It might be easier on her to try another type of sling.
Also I always made sure there were no wrinkles in the sling and that the loops were all at the correct position. The color of the loops will position a person differently. Placed one way the person is sitting up more move to a different loop and is is a slight recline, move another loop and the position changes again. You might want to see how the loops are positioned to see if that makes a difference.
I think there are now rules that prohibit 2 person transfer when a person needs that type of care the use of equipment is then necessary. for the safety of the patient as well as the staff.
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