Lifting during Pregnancy

Nurses General Nursing

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How much weight is it considered safe to lift during pregnancy? Did you still continue to scoot patients up in bed and turn them when pregnant?

Specializes in Renal, Haemo and Peritoneal.
How much weight is it considered safe to lift during pregnancy? Did you still continue to scoot patients up in bed and turn them when pregnant?

When I work with a colleague whom I know is pregnant I tend to say "No lifting of any sort!" and take up the slack. I never put myself in danger, but I am twice the size and glad to care for my colleagues.

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Specializes in Renal, Haemo and Peritoneal.
How much weight is it considered safe to lift during pregnancy? Did you still continue to scoot patients up in bed and turn them when pregnant?

When I work with a colleague whom I know is pregnant I tend to say "No lifting of any sort!" and take up the slack. I never put myself in danger, but I am twice the size and glad to care for my colleagues.

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The best way to go is to try and get "no lift" policies introduced. When it comes to moving patients in bed slide sheets/ move tubes are cheap, effective and can be used by virtually anyone.

This is a main reason I appreciate ICU as I get older... more patients are bedfast and I can utilize this method. If I were not ICU certified I likely could not remain in facility nursing due to spine injuries and surgeries over the years and resulting arthritis.

Floor work (ortho, medsurg) is brutal IMO and takes its toll on the body over years. Some facilities respond better than others with appropriate staffing and equipment, but personally I choose not to do floor work anymore.

From an 'old' nurse: it IS more than just lifting properly...its repetitive stress so be verrry careful. Hospitals go to 'no lift' policies to protect themselves more than their nurses, IMO. They can short staff us then claim we didn't follow 'policy' if we get hurt moving a patient, so they're not responsible for our injury. :(

I will now let a patient slide to the floor vs risking injury to myself, and will refuse to lift/move patients if I don't have enough help to safely do so..... but I was NOT taught to do this in school.. :(

Nurses are not synonymous to martyrs but some facilities seem to think so. Hope today's nursing schools are doing a better job of teaching nurses how to protect themselves on the job; I had lip service and the promise that lifting properly would always prevent any risk of injury. Wrong.

Take care of yourselves nurses...if you don't nobody will, believe me. :stone

When I was in my last month of pregnancy it became difficult for me due to the swing shift floor workload, and my doc took me off work, luckily. We suffered a bit financially but had a healthy baby, which was my priority. I was getting pre-eclampic and stress of the job was aggravating it. So nurses: keep your HCP informed so they can best advise you.

Best wishes for healthy pregnancies and babes! :)

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The best way to go is to try and get "no lift" policies introduced. When it comes to moving patients in bed slide sheets/ move tubes are cheap, effective and can be used by virtually anyone.

This is a main reason I appreciate ICU as I get older... more patients are bedfast and I can utilize this method. If I were not ICU certified I likely could not remain in facility nursing due to spine injuries and surgeries over the years and resulting arthritis.

Floor work (ortho, medsurg) is brutal IMO and takes its toll on the body over years. Some facilities respond better than others with appropriate staffing and equipment, but personally I choose not to do floor work anymore.

From an 'old' nurse: it IS more than just lifting properly...its repetitive stress so be verrry careful. Hospitals go to 'no lift' policies to protect themselves more than their nurses, IMO. They can short staff us then claim we didn't follow 'policy' if we get hurt moving a patient, so they're not responsible for our injury. :(

I will now let a patient slide to the floor vs risking injury to myself, and will refuse to lift/move patients if I don't have enough help to safely do so..... but I was NOT taught to do this in school.. :(

Nurses are not synonymous to martyrs but some facilities seem to think so. Hope today's nursing schools are doing a better job of teaching nurses how to protect themselves on the job; I had lip service and the promise that lifting properly would always prevent any risk of injury. Wrong.

Take care of yourselves nurses...if you don't nobody will, believe me. :stone

When I was in my last month of pregnancy it became difficult for me due to the swing shift floor workload, and my doc took me off work, luckily. We suffered a bit financially but had a healthy baby, which was my priority. I was getting pre-eclampic and stress of the job was aggravating it. So nurses: keep your HCP informed so they can best advise you.

Best wishes for healthy pregnancies and babes! :)

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.
My OB doctor has put the restriction of no lifting over 25 lbs on me. Along with another restriction. They aren't going to accomodate me in the area i currently work.:o

That's really too bad. We've always helped each other out when a nurse has a weight restriction that is going to be temporary. Where we work there are minimum physical demand requirements on file and we see them once a year when we are evaled. So technically if we are unable to fulfill that job description they aren't obligated to accommodate us. But for a short-term time we usually do.

Good luck.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.
My OB doctor has put the restriction of no lifting over 25 lbs on me. Along with another restriction. They aren't going to accomodate me in the area i currently work.:o

That's really too bad. We've always helped each other out when a nurse has a weight restriction that is going to be temporary. Where we work there are minimum physical demand requirements on file and we see them once a year when we are evaled. So technically if we are unable to fulfill that job description they aren't obligated to accommodate us. But for a short-term time we usually do.

Good luck.

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Anybody else have a co-worker who says she could be pregnant everyday? "We're Trying'" she says. Of course thsi means no isolation rooms or lifting. Don't get me wrong, we're not unkind about it, we make a joke out of it, bringing in $ Store Pregnancy tests. One morning we all said we could be pregnant, the charge nurse flipped!

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Anybody else have a co-worker who says she could be pregnant everyday? "We're Trying'" she says. Of course thsi means no isolation rooms or lifting. Don't get me wrong, we're not unkind about it, we make a joke out of it, bringing in $ Store Pregnancy tests. One morning we all said we could be pregnant, the charge nurse flipped!

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Ummm....since when is lifting prohibited in the first few weeks of pregnancy?

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Ummm....since when is lifting prohibited in the first few weeks of pregnancy?

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Ummm....since when is lifting prohibited in the first few weeks of pregnancy?

Lifting is prohibited for me in my first few weeks cos i'm a high risk of bleeding, as i bled in my 2 previous pregnancies.

I think it is prohibited if it can cause problems and even miscarriages.

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Ummm....since when is lifting prohibited in the first few weeks of pregnancy?

Lifting is prohibited for me in my first few weeks cos i'm a high risk of bleeding, as i bled in my 2 previous pregnancies.

I think it is prohibited if it can cause problems and even miscarriages.

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