Positioning in sitting and in lying

Positioning in sitting and in lying: moving and handling considerations

Learning Objectives

At the end of this one-day workshop participants will be able to:

• Identify the difference between moving and handling that is necessary and unnecessary when positioning a client in a bed and in a chair.
• Recognise the factors that lead to this unnecessary moving and handling.
• Provide an effective intervention to eliminate unnecessary moving and handling in these tasks as far as is possible.


Background

Exposure to moving and handling for health workers has been linked with increased risk of back injury.  This means the more you do, the greater your risk.  Whilst there is a family/worker at risk during moving and handling, there is also a client who is exposed to a routine that are at times arduous and uncomfortable. However, moving and handling takes place in the context of tasks that need to be done – e.g. showering, going to toilet etc.  Avoidance is therefore not an option, so how do we deal with the risk when we come across them as health professionals?

In this workshop, you will learn how to divide moving and handling you see as a health professional into necessary and unnecessary moving and handling.  You will unpack what factors come into play to make unnecessary moving and handling present.  You will learn how to recommend solutions where moving and handling is minimized as far as practicable.  The goal being a smart solution for the care team where the safety of both is ensured, the care routine is efficient and is a quality experience for both.

Presenter – Aideen Gallagher (B.Sc.OT, MOHS, MPH)

Aideen is an occupational therapist who has worked in moving and handling for the last 20 years.  She has been teaching health professionals how to ensure smart care solutions for their clients for the last 15 years.  She is the author of the Amazon #1 best selling book ‘The Manual Handling Revolution’ as well as her second book released in 2021, ‘SmartCare’.  Aideen is the creator of the SmartCare passport which was winner of the InnvoAGEING award for productivity in Aged Care in 2021.  In 2018, she was a finalist for the Safe Work Leadership award in NSW Australia.    Aideen is known in the field for her innovative teaching methods.  Her workshop and keynote presentations were voted best presentations at the National Back exchange Conference in the UK in 2019 and the average score across webinars and face to face workshops is consistently 9.2/10.

Here is what others have said:

‘I enjoyed the practical approach. Problem and solutions bring the theory to life from the beginning. I can use the content in a job I've got next week. No waffle at the start - just straight into it’.

‘Your workshops continue to provide insight into both what I need to know with regards to moving and handling, and what I still don't know, and both are invaluable!

‘Love your client focused and positive energy. I always come away feeling invigorated and excited to apply a new or refreshed perspective’.

‘Participant involvement in the content delivery and the provision of "actual answers" as opposed to just "theorising" how things can be done