Lifting Techniques for Home Caregivers

Many people meet with accidents or face serious injuries, due to other reasons. These injuries cause them to suffer from a temporary, or sometimes even a permanent disability! This further results in difficulty in doing day-to-day activities, such as getting up, sitting down, performing daily routine activities, etc. In such cases, to help these people out, home caregivers play an important role! Now, who are home caregivers? Well, they are experts, trained to assist and support patients in sitting and standing up. The definition looks simple and so does the job! However, our concern over here is that, home caregivers many a time, suffer from health problems such as back pain, while,

• Leaning over a person for a prolonged time.
• Pulling a patient, who is leaning back on the bed in a sitting position.
• Transferring a person from chair to bed and vice-versa.

The body positions and movements can in turn land them in serious upper back and lower back pain. Therefore, avoid such a pain, it is important to follow some ideal lifting techniques for home caregivers! So let us figure out all of those techniques in the following text.

Lifting Techniques for Nurses

The following are some home caregivers' lifting techniques for patients suffering from physical problems. But, before going onto learn the techniques, it is necessary to know about some important tips pertaining to the same.

• The first thing that you need to understand over here is to avoid twisting movements of the body, while carrying or assisting the patient in getting up.
• Feet should be shoulder width apart, while maintaining proper balance of the entire body.
• Utilize the leg muscles to pull and/or lift the patient.
• Keep the patient close to your body, while moving or lifting him.
• Avoiding bending at the waist and try to maintain the natural curve of your spine.
• Call for additional assistance, if the person is too heavy.
• Keep your neck, head and spine in proper alignment.

While Standing Up
Patients requiring assistance to get up from the chair, should be assisted by the home caregiver in this way. Face towards the patient and keep your feet shoulder width apart and then bend down. Let the patient's feet be on the floor, with a slight distance between them. Position the patient's hands either on your shoulders or on the bed. Further, position your hands around the patient's back and clench your hands together. Hold the person firmly, close to you and further lean back and shift the weight. Normally, the patient is tied a belt around his waist. So the caregiver must hold the belt, while lifting the patient up.

While Sitting in Bed
To shift a bedridden patient from the bed to the wheelchair, bring the chair close to the bed and then lock the wheels. Sometimes, disability can lead to loss of strength. So if the patient is not sufficiently strong to get up himself, then place one arm under the patient's legs and the other under his back. Move the patient's leg to the edge of the bed and simultaneously pivot his body, so that the patient finally ends up sitting on the edge of the bed. While doing this activity, see that your feet are shoulder width part, back naturally straight and knees bent.

While Sitting Down
Pivot towards the chair, bend your knees and position the patient in the wheelchair. While sitting on the chair, take care that the patient's hands are placed on the handle of the chair, for self support. See that, your feet are shoulder width apart and you bend sufficiently to place the person on the chair comfortably.

Certainly, upper and lower back pain would not be a big problem if you follow the above said tips and lifting techniques mentioned here. Moreover, the job would become efficient, comfortable and you would also be able to provide proper patient care, once you gain expertise in implementing the techniques. All the Best for your noble job!!!