Nurse Care Plan

Adherence to the principles of moving and handling are paramount if we are to ensure the safety of the patient, their family members, our colleagues and ourselves. You must adhere to your Trust’s policy on manual handling. The key principles of safe moving and handling infants, children and young people are as follows.
1. Do not lift if at all possible.
2. If a child needs to be moved, appropriate equipment should be utilized where necessary. It is important to communicate the procedure to the child and family beforehand. The child and family need to be involved in discussions and their preferences identified.
3. Encourage the child to help as much as they possibly can themselves; ultimately, this may avoid the need for manual handling. It is important that the child feels that they are not being transported from one place to another with little or no say. For example, a child on bed rest might be able to do a bridge when they require a bedpan or having their clothes changed. If transferring a child from a bed to a chair, they may well be able to edge their way to the side of the bed, thus completing the first part of the process, or a sliding sheet may be placed beneath them to help them move more independently.
Any independence that can be encouraged is important as it will increase the child’s feelings of security, well-being and self-esteem.
4. Do not try to perform other tasks while lifting or handling a child.
5. There is no such thing as a quick lift or a ‘simple assist’.
6. Many children are too heavy to be lifted and equipment is required.
7. If lifting cannot be avoided, the risk needs to be assessed. Refer to the child’s care plan. Identify handling hazards and regularly review this care plan.
8. Consider the task, individual, load, environment and equipment before progressing with handling the child, ensuring the correct skills are possessed by all those involved in the handling process.