Mobility and Safe Patient Handling Quiz

Importance of Body Mechanics and Safe Patient Handling

• The three body systems contributing to the regulation of movements are the muscular system, skeletal system, and nervous system.
• Coordinated efforts of body systems help maintain balance, posture, and body alignment to reduce the risk of injury during movement.
• Terms to become familiar with include body mechanics, body alignment, body balance, gait, gravity, friction, shear, and ergonomics.
• Proper use of body mechanics ensures safety for both the client and the nurse during tasks like lifting, bending, and moving.
• Correct body alignment reduces strain on musculoskeletal structures.
• Body balance is achieved when the center of gravity is balanced over a stable base of support and enhanced by proper posture.
• Friction opposes movement and increases the risk of skin and tissue damage and potential pressure injuries.
• Gravity exerts a downward force on the body, while shear is the force exerted parallel to the skin and results from both gravity and resistance.
• Friction can be reduced by assessing the client's cognitive status, providing directions, collaborating during lifting, and using the client's strength.
• Knowledge of safe working posture and implementation of body mechanics principles increase client and nurse safety and decrease work effort.
• Principles of body mechanics include maintaining a wide base of support, facing the direction of movement, planning lifts, and using mechanical lifts when a client is unable to assist.
• It is safe to manually lift a patient when the weight is under 35 lbs, the client can follow directions, and the lifting is smooth and slow. Mobility refers to the ability to move easily and independently, and illnesses, surgery, injuries, pain, and aging can impair mobility.

Nursing Techniques for Mobility and Safe Transfer

• Pathological influences on mobility include postural abnormalities, impaired muscle development, direct trauma to the musculoskeletal system, damage to the central nervous system, congenital abnormalities, degenerative diseases, and episodic illnesses.
• Activity tolerance is the type and amount of exercise or activity an individual can perform, and nurses should assess for fatigue during activity and the client's ability to help.
• Functional decline is the loss of the ability to perform self-care or activities of daily living, which can be caused by illness or deconditioning associated with inactivity.
• Immobility is the inability to move freely, and nurses can decrease its effects through safe transfer techniques, body mechanics, ergonomics, and safe patient handling.
• Nurses should prepare the environment, consider the client's safety and body mechanics, and assess the client's condition prior to transferring them from bed to chair.
• Before transferring a client, nurses should assess the client's comprehension, mobility, contracture formation, muscle strength, presence of pain, vital signs, sensory and cognitive status, level of motivation, and previous mode of transfers.
• The process of transferring a client from bed to chair involves raising the side rail, elevating the bed to a comfortable height, assisting the client to a sitting position, and assessing correct body alignment.
• When assisting the client into a sitting position, nurses should flex hips and knees to align with the client's, and use an algorithm to transfer the client out of a stretcher.
• Nurses should evaluate the client's body alignment, tolerance, fatigue, and comfort with each transfer and assess for cues such as activity tolerance, coordination, balance, and motivation before assisting the client to walk.
• Walkers should be waist high, provide a wide base of support, and move forward with the affected leg first, then the unaffected leg.
• Canes should be used on the stronger side of the body, and the technique involves moving the cane forward, advancing the weaker leg, and repeating.
• When ambulating a client with hemiplegia/hemiparesis, nurses should stand at the client's affected side, support the client at the waist and around the upper arm, and use a gait belt for stability. If a client begins to fall, the nurse should provide support at the waist, assume a wide base of support, and protect the client's head.

Test your knowledge on body mechanics, safe patient handling, and nursing techniques for mobility and safe transfer with this informative quiz. Explore the importance of body alignment, balance, and ergonomics, as well as key principles for safe lifting and transferring of patients. Gain insights into assessing mobility, activity tolerance, and functional decline, and learn about the techniques for assisting clients with various mobility impairments.