According to gov.uk data, 61% of adults in England were classified as overweight or obese in the UK in 2016/2017. While this brings with it a raft of health problems in its own right, it also has major implications for caregivers. Coupled with the fact that the average age for retirement for nurses and care assistants is on the increase, and it looks like there’s a big problem on the horizon…
Scout’s honour
While the risk of injury can never be completely eliminated, there is a large body of research that has shown that safe patient handling interventions can significantly reduce health related injuries, even with the physical strain attributed to moving overweight adults.
One rather obvious but often overlooked intervention is preparation. This has been the Scout’s motto for over 100 years and is used all over the world. Robert Baden Powell, founder of the Scouts offers a deeper explanation of the phrase in his ‘Scouting for Boys’ handbook saying ‘be prepared’ actually relates to both your mind and your body.
To be mentally prepared you need to have “thought out beforehand any accident or situation that might occur, so that you know the right thing to do at the right moment and are willing to do it”. To be physically prepared you should make yourself “strong and active and able to do the right thing at the right moment”. It’s excellent advice for Scouts, but it’s equally relevant to carers and the process of people handling.
Fail to prepare, prepare to fail
When you’re moving and handling people, you’re not going to be successful if you don’t get your preparation right. Correct preparation is a vital part of good working practice for a handler. So whether you’re a nurse, a carer or in any other people handling role, you need to make sure you’re fully equipped with the correct patient handling skills and equipment.
People first
This is where our Safer People Handling Trainers course can help. The course is Level 3 accredited and an ideal start for organisations wanting to teach, mentor and coach mandatory training to their employees that is bespoke to their organisational needs based on current best practice.
The course is designed with the aim of developing a confident, motivated and professionally qualified safer people handling trainer, who promotes the movement of people in a safe and dignified way, with a ‘person centred’ approach.
What are the benefits?
Organisations which have their own on-site people handling trainer will enjoy a host of business benefits including the reduction of Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs), as moving and handling is a key part of the day for most employees in the health and social care and education sectors.
It will ensure compliance with welfare and regulatory legislation as well as providing the workforce with increased skills and competence to provide correct people handling techniques so that risks are reduced to carers and patients/residents.
In addition, it will provide organisations with effective moving and handling training that focuses on their bespoke needs, making training more meaningful and with better outcomes for the workforce and users of the services
Our Safer People Handling Trainers course is delivered around the UK as well as in-house by experienced trainers with nursing health and safety and teaching qualifications.
If you’d like to learn more about our Safer People Handling Trainers course, please call us on 0121 248 2233, email or visit our website.