Support the Lift Team Bill, SB171

Support the Lift Team Bill, SB171!

As nurses, we are all at tremendous risk for developing debilitating back problems while on the job. According to an Occupational and Environmental Medicine research study, “health care workers…lead the nation in work-related musculoskeletal disorders.”
SB 171, more accurately known as the “Zero lift/safe patient handling policy,” requires acute care hospitals to create a patient protection and health care worker back injury plan. This bill will provides three things:

- The establishment of assistive patient transfer and repositioning personnel and equipment

- Protection from disciplinary action for health care workers who refuse to lift, reposition, or transfer a patient due to concerns about patient or worker safety, if there is a lack of trained lift team personnel or equipment.

- The requirement that each acute care hospital conduct a self-assessment of needs in regards to implementation of the zero-lift policy, and mandates implementation of lift assistance programs when needed

The continuous increases in the obesity and acuity of our patients in all levels of health care will indefinitely add to the physical demands on our health care workers, resulting in greater risks for work related injuries. The passing of this bill would prove to be a wise investment that would proactively preserve the wellness of our workforce, a measure that is desperately needed during this time of nurse shortages.

Urge the governor now to invest in the health and welfare of California's nurses!
http://www.govmail.ca.gov/