Bed Transfer Injury Attorneys

Bed Transfer Injury

For many nurses and health care professionals both in home and facility settings, transferring and lifting patients is an uncomfortable reality. In fact, nurses are at the highest risk of any profession for back injuries, especially bed transfer injuries/lifting injuries. Read on for more information on the dangers of lifting injuries and your legal rights.

How do bed transfer and lifting injuries occur? The typical nurse lifts at least 20 patients during a routine shift, not including bed-to-chair transfers. In most heavy industrial occupations, 100 pounds or more is considered an unsafe load for workers expected to lift it with this frequency, but this standard unfortunately does not apply in nursing, where nurses are expected to lift patients often weighing well in excess of 100 pounds. Often, short staffing or improper training means that a nurse is unassisted during lifting. The result? Lifting or bed transfer injuries that can affect the back, arms, nervous system, and more, causing strains, sprains, breaks, even serious spinal cord injuries.

There can be a stigma against speaking out regarding bed transfer and lifting injuries. After all, nurses are in a caregiving profession and bed transfers and lifts are necessary to prevent bed sores and provide quality care. However, this does not mean that nurses themselves lack rights regarding workplace safety. All workers, even nurses, are entitled to a safe workplace, and their employers can be taken to task when lifting or bed transfer injuries occur.

If you've hurt yourself in a bed transfer or lifting injury, seek medical assistance immediately. Then contact a reputable nursing injury attorney with experience in these kinds of workplace claims. Your workplace injury lawyer can help assess your employer's liability and file a workers' compensation or civil claim seeking damages for your injuries and your lasting effects. If you prevail in court, you could receive financial damages related to treatment of your injury, applicable hospitalizations and physical therapy, even job retraining or vocational rehabilitation and pain and suffering compensation.

Remember – bed transfer injuries may be common in nursing, but they're not acceptable in a workplace. If you've been injured while lifting or transferring a patient, stand up for your rights. Contact Anapol Schwarz today for more information and a free, confidential case consultation with an experienced RN injury attorney.

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