Patient Transfer Techniques and Safety

Vocabulary flashcards covering patient transfer safety, precautions, slide board protocols, knee blocking, and assistive transfer equipment.

Transfer Completion Criteria

The requirement that a transfer is only complete when the patient is comfortable, safe, and has a way to call for assistance (such as a call light).

PEG Tube Gait Belt Placement

Positioning the gait belt above the tube insertion site so that if the patient falls, the tube is not pulled out.

Gait Belt Application Guidelines

Safety rules requiring that the belt never be placed on bare skin, is held with a supinated grip, and is applied over a back brace or on the outside of a patient's gown.

Head-Hip Relationship

The principle where the patient directs their head in the direction opposite of their movement (e.g., turning the head to the right when transferring hips to the left) to assist the clinician in controlling hip motion.

Wheelchair Footrest Management (Slide Board)

The practice of removing removable footrests and placing them under the wheelchair seat to prevent the chair from tipping forward during transfers.

Slide Board Hand Hole Precaution

Instructing the patient never to place their fingers or hands through the cutouts or holes of a slide board to avoid injury during movement.

Slide Board Knee Guarding Position

Clinician positioning where knees are placed on the outside of the patient's legs or directly blocking them, strictly avoiding placing a knee between the patient's legs.

Anterior-Posterior Scooting Transfer

A front-to-back or back-to-front seated scooting transfer between bed and wheelchair, often utilized by patients with bilateral lower extremity amputations.

Pivot Transfer Weight-Bearing Requirement

The mandatory capability of the patient to bear weight through at least one leg in order to safely perform a seated, squat, or stand pivot transfer.

Appropriate Patient Footwear

Footwear providing traction, such as non-slip shoes or socks with grippers underneath, excluding bare feet and regular slippery socks.

Methods for Forward Hip Movement

Techniques for scooting hips forward in a seated surface prior to transfer: lift, forward shift, and lower; alternate weight shifts; or a forward slide.

"Nose Over Toes"

A verbal cue instructing the patient to lean their trunk forward before pushing up from the chair armrests.

Proximal Tibia Contact

The recommended anatomical contact location where a clinician places their knees against the patient's legs when performing a knee block.

Knee Blocking Configurations

Techniques to stabilize a patient's lower extremities during transfers, categorized as two clinician knees to two patient knees ($2:2$), two knees to one knee ($2:1$), or one knee to one knee ($1:1$).

Squat Pivot Transfer

A seated pivot transfer preferred over a standing pivot when a patient exhibits significant lower-limb weakness or impaired balance, keeping their center of mass low.

Swivel Disc

A rotating transfer device placed beneath the patient's feet that turns with them to facilitate pivoting between surfaces.

Pivot Pole

A vertical pole securely attached to the ceiling and floor, commonly found in home health to assist patients with limited mobility in transferring between a bed and wheelchair.