How to perform a safe abdominal positioning on the operating table

Manually moving an intubated patient from the face-up to the face-down position on an operating table entails heavy lifting and significant risk.

There is much to consider when performing such a move.

The patient is anesthetized and is therefore unable to actively participate. He or she will also be connected to tubes that must be taken into account.

Furthermore, there is a risk of shearing on the patient's skin.

A nurse anesthetist must support the patient's head and ensure that the tube remains in place.
It takes four to six people and proper teamwork among the personnel to perform the manual move.

Using a ceiling-mounted hoist and positioning sling for the operating table increases patient safety as well as the safety of the personnel.

This, in turn, means, that the personnel's time can be used more efficiently, which frees up resources for other tasks, as the positioning can be performed by three people instead.