How to Lift an Injured Patient
When a patient is injured and can't move, you will have to lift the patient to take him or her to a place where he or she can receive care. The lift can be easy or difficult, depending on the physical size of the patient and the patient's injury. You may have small patients who have sustained injuries that make them fragile or larger patients with minor injuries; both moves are difficult. To be successful, you have to prepare quickly and be accurate in your steps.Things You'll Need
- Slide board
Instructions
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Assess the patient to see how capable he or she is of handling the move. If the patient has sustained life-threatening injuries, you have to be steady and gentle with the move to avoid worsening the injury. However, if the patient's injury is less severe, you can move faster (this is not to say that you can be careless, however).
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Observe the patient's physical size and decide on the number of people that is necessary to lift the patient. In general, the number of people required to lift a patient is three.
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Fold the patient's arms across the chest to make the patient's body as compact as possible.
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Stand on one side of the patient and have two other people stand on the opposite side.
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Ensure that the body, especially the neck and head, is as still as possible and have the people on the opposite side turn the patient toward them. Lay a slide board under the patient and have the other rescuers turn the patient back so that he or she is on top of it.
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Line up a stretcher at the feet of the patient so that you can lift the patient and move him or her to the stretcher in a single motion. Lock the wheels on the stretcher so that it doesn't move.
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Grip the handles on the slide board and at the count of three, lift the patient and transfer him or her to the stretcher. Remember, always lift with your back straight and your knees bent to give yourself the best leverage.
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Assess the patient again before transporting him or her on the stretcher.
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