Safe Patient Handling is Key to Nurses' Longevity (President's Message‪)‬

Happy National Nurses Week 2009! I hope you've been enjoying the spring weather by getting outside for leisure activities, gardening, sporting events or perhaps some hardcore exercise. We're so blessed to live in a state with an average of 218 days per year of beautiful sunshine! It's great for your physical and mental health. The change in seasons prompted me to get outside and do some weeding around the house in preparation for spring planting. Unfortunately, I didn't get much done before my lower back was aching, my neck and shoulder muscles were in a knot, and my knees were creaking! Too soon, I had to stop and rest. Whether it's because I've hit the half-century mark or it's the result of years of lifting patients, stretching to reach wall items (e.g., O2 flow meter), bending over to take vital signs, transferring patients from bed to chair, or any other number of physical tasks, I am often reminded of the stress my body has endured over the course of my nursing career. I also know that my patients have increased in size and acuity over the years. It is not unusual for me to have at least one complex medical patient in my assignment over 250 pounds. For example, in my last two 12-hour shifts, BJ was a patient I cared for who weighed nearly 400 pounds, was primarily bed-bound, and suffered from left-sided paralysis after a stroke. She had a tracheostomy, diabetes, pressure ulcers, and a number of other problems that required diligent nursing assessment and intervention. This probably sounds very familiar to many readers, as hospitalized patients are sicker and older, and more are clinically obese than ever before.