Safe Patient Transfers Made Easy
Safe patient transfers were not always easy for me. The lack of a solution to transfer her from the bed to a wheelchair, a wheelchair to a toilet and other seated surfaces like car and chairs in public created a struggle that was repeated over and over. My wife had progressive MS and she lost the use of her legs and eventually her arms. I closed my business and struggled daily to help her live somewhat normally. It began early in the morning and went till late at night seven days a week. At one point I counted the number of transfers we were performing, and I was shocked to discover it was 40 to 50 times a day. I knew I could not keep it up much longer with my backing screamed for relief. I knew I had to develop or discover a new set of safe patient transfers.
I knew what it would mean if I could not transfer her when needed. I shuddered at the thought. It has been said that desperation is the mother of invention and I must agree. I tried every possible solution I could find, but nothing worked. I used my experience as a printer and copier tech where I often moved large bulky items without any assistance. I applied the same concepts and experimented. I keep working until I saw hope of a solution.
Together through trial and error process we arrived at a solution. We continued to improve this solution for different challenges we faced for the next three years until her death. After Janice passed away, all I had left was our home and the important knowledge of hot to solve a difficult problem faced by people with limited mobility and those who care for them. I decided my mission was to teach others how to solve this difficult chore.
Today I have conducted more than one thousand training and learning classes to more than ten thousand nurses, CN, PT, and staff personnel of hospitals, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers nationwide. It was not always just me teaching, but also learning little tips from others. This accumulated knowledge was molded into this program creating a finely tooled solution for patient transfers. Few people have more experience in transferring a person beginning at home and leading to major medical facilities nationwide.
Our transfer plan includes 7 steps to prepare your patient or loved one to transfer and 7 steps to prepare yourself. When you are both prepared the transfer takes only seconds and is as easy as moving a small bag of groceries from your basket to your trunk. A small woman can actually transfer a man up to twice her size safely and easily. There are 16 techniques depending on the condition of the parties involved and the condition of the transfer location.
My goal is to teach as many people as I can these important steps and techniques to safely and easily transfer. For many it may be the solution to the quiet desperation that everyone feels when you cannot transfer and for others it may be the needed relief from pain resulting from transfer stress.
