The Impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) on Safe Patient Handling and Mobility: Clinical Considerations for Best Practice

The use of patient handling technology can help to minimize the number of caregivers needed to safely care for a patient, reducing the risk of injury to both the caregiver and patient, thereby promoting patient mobilization. But as the world is faced with a viral pandemic, and government agencies and public health organizations struggle to understand the full impact COVID-19 will have on our healthcare system, what are the implications to the safe patient handling and mobility industry? How does COVID-19 impact patient mobility and caregiver safety? This article seeks to explore clinical considerations for establishing safe patient handling and mobility (SPHM) best practice for minimizing disease transmission while continuing to promote the importance of mobility for critically ill patients as emerging information about this novel coronavirus becomes available.

Latvala S, Masterman R

Keywords: safe patient handling, early mobility, progressive mobility, COVID-19, coronavirus