Nursing employees suffer more debilitating back and other body injuries than almost any other occupation, and most of those injuries are caused by lifting and moving patients, according to an article on the Rhode Island NPR website.
The article describes the case of a nurse at Mission Hospital in Asheville, N.C., for more than 20 years who was fired after a series of back injuries, mainly from lifting patients.
Studies by the U.S. government and university researchers in the 1990s began showing that hospitals can prevent many of those injuries, if hospital administrators invest enough time and money. They have to buy special equipment to move patients, such as powered ceiling hoists, and they have to conduct intensive training for the staff, the article said.
Some hospitals have purchased a limited amount of equipment and conducted some staff training, researchers say, but most have not taken aggressive steps to protect their nursing staff.
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