Investing in Safe Handling Training Pays Off
Musculoskeletal injuries are the leading type of injury for both long-term care and home care and support workers. That’s why investing in safe handling training is critical.
Earlier this year, ten staff from Richmond’s Rosewood Manor and Pinegrove Place participated in a two-day Safe Resident Handling training session. Deborah Goegan, Rosewood’s Administrator, reports that the training has had a positive impact.
“We don’t have a lot of injuries related to safe handling, but there have been some near-misses, and so it’s important for our staff to understand mechanical lifts and how to properly transfer residents,” she says. “And now we have five safe handling experts at our home.”
Following the training, Rosewood, which has about 100 direct care staff and 156 residents, set about revising its safe resident handling policy, developed a reference document for staff at each nursing station, and held staff learning sessions and safety huddles.
The newly trained safe resident handlers showed staff how to do safe handling risk assessments, and provided other safety tips, including not using soaker pads for repositioning. Rosewood recently hired a physiotherapist, who has reviewed and endorsed the home’s Safe Resident Handling policy, which further validates the work the staff have done.
In addition, if there were an injury related to safe handing, the trained handlers would work with the injured staff to re-educate them to help prevent future injury.
Goegan adds that investing in this type of training is important for several reasons such as wanting to provide the best possible care for residents, ensuring the wellness of staff, and for operational reasons.
“We have a lot of staff who have been here a long time, and I see many older ones who are off work with sore backs,” says Goegan.
“My hope is that with new equipment and more training our younger staff will learn that they need to take care of themselves, so they don’t have injuries that cause chronic pain.”
This article is the second in a four-part series on safe handling. Read the first article featuring Lee Frederick of Parksville’s Arrowsmith Lodge, and check out SafeCare BC’s Safe Handling Toolkit.
SafeCare BC Launches New Website
SafeCare BC is pleased to announce the launch of its new website—www.safecarebc.ca—with a fresh look, many tools and resources, and access to its training and education programs. If there is some particular content you would like to see featured on the site, contact the team at info@safecarebc.ca.
Upcoming Workshops and Training Courses
SafeCare BC has scheduled workshops and training courses throughout the next year. You can check out their entire course schedule here.
If you’re interested in booking a session at your organization or have any questions, contact Marjahn O’Connor at marjahn@safecarebc.ca.
