In Australian hospitals and residential aged care facilities, how do we train nursing and direct care staff to assist patients and residents to move? A national survey
Natasha Brusco
A * , Terry Haines B , Nicholas F. Taylor C D , Helen Rawson E , Leanne Boyd F , Christina Ekegren A , Helen Kugler G , Helen Dawes H , Camilla Radia-George I , Christine Graven A and Keith Hill A
A Rehabilitation, Ageing and Independent Living (RAIL) Research Centre, Monash University, Vic., Australia.
B School of Primary and Allied Health Care, Monash University, Vic., Australia.
C Allied Health Clinical Research Office, Eastern Health, Box Hill, Vic. Australia.
D School of Allied Health Human Services and Sport, La Trobe University, Vic., Australia.
E Nursing and Midwifery, Monash University, Vic., Australia.
F Nursing and Midwifery, and Teaching and Learning, Eastern Health, Box Hill, Vic., Australia.
G Clinical Education and Research Institute, Cabrini Health, Malvern, Vic. Australia.
H College of Medicine, Department of Public Health & Sports Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Intersect@Exeter, University of Exeter, UK.
I Health, disability, counselling and mental health services, EACH, Ringwood, Vic, Australia.
Australian Health Review 47(3) 331-338 https://doi.org/10.1071/AH22296
Submitted: 23 December 2022 Accepted: 23 April 2023 Published: 22 May 2023
© 2023 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of AHHA. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)
Abstract
Objective Nursing workplace injuries related to staff-assisted patient/resident movement occur frequently, however, little is known about the programs that aim to prevent these injuries. The objectives of this study were to: (i) describe how Australian hospitals and residential aged care services provide manual handling training to staff and the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on training; (ii) report issues relating to manual handling; (iii) explore the inclusion of dynamic risk assessment; and (iv) describe the barriers and potential improvements.
Method Using a cross-sectional design, an online 20-min survey was distributed by email, social media, and snowballing to Australian hospitals and residential aged care services.
Results Respondents were from 75 services across Australia, with a combined 73 000 staff who assist patients/residents to mobilise. Most services provide staff manual handling training on commencement (85%; n = 63/74), then annually (88% n = 65/74). Since the COVID-19 pandemic, training was less frequent, shorter in duration, and with greater online content. Respondents reported issues with staff injuries (63% n = 41), patient/resident falls (52% n = 34), and patient/resident inactivity (69% n = 45). Dynamic risk assessment was missing in part or in whole from most programs (92% n = 67/73), despite a belief that this may reduce staff injuries (93% n = 68/73), patient/resident falls (81% n = 59/73) and inactivity (92% n = 67/73). Barriers included insufficient staff and time, and improvements included giving residents a say in how they move and greater access to allied health.
Conclusion Most Australian health and aged care services provide clinical staff with regular manual handling training for staff‐assisted patient/resident movement, however, issues with staff injuries, as well as patient/resident falls and inactivity, remain. While there was a belief that dynamic in‐the‐moment risk assessment during staff‐assisted patient/resident movement may improve staff and resident/patient safety, it was missing from most manual handling programs.
Keywords: allied health, hospital, manual handling, nursing, occupational health and safety, patient, resident, residential aged care.
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