Over 10,000 nurses and student nurses participated in the American Nurses Association’s (ANA) most recent nurse work survey which reported that 51% of nurses experience musculoskeletal pain while at work (“Executive Summary: ANA Health Risk Appraisal”, 2016). One of the most common sites of pain in nurses is the low back (United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018).
Nurses who spend more than two hours a day directly caring for patients are at significantly higher risk of musculoskeletal pain and injury than non-patient care workers (Oranye, Wallis, Roer, Archer-Heese, & Aguilar, 2016). Patient handling such as repositioning in bed, transferring from bed to chair, and assisting patients with toileting are the types of movements most often associated with musculoskeletal pain and injury in nurses (Weiner, Alperovitch-Najenson, Ribak, & Kalichman, 2015). Repositioning patients in bed is one of the riskiest behaviors by nurses often leading to low back pain and injury according to Weiner, et al. (2015) and others (Yassi & Lockhart, 2013; Davis & Kotowski, 2015).
There is strong evidence indicating safe patient handling using appropriate assistive devices reduces the rate of musculoskeletal injury among health care personnel (Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 2018). Additionally, there is a growing body of evidence which demonstrates that certain exercise modalities may be beneficial for relieving musculoskeletal pain, including stretching, yoga, and Pilates (Chen, Wang, Chen, & Hu, 2014; Suni, et al., 2016; Jaromi, et al., 2015; Freimann, Merisalu., & Pääsuke, 2015; Ajimsha, Daniel, and Chithra, 2015).
To combat the significant problem of nurse workplace injury, we are developing an online educational module. The module will include three teaching objectives: to raise nurses’ consciousness of their risk factors by presenting findings and trends based on current literature; to explain the importance of safe patient handling and the proper use of assistive devices; and to discuss and demonstrate certain exercise modalities which may help strengthen muscles and thus reduce the risk of muscle strain.
The module is being collaboratively developed with content experts from a variety of disciplines including medicine, osteoarthritis research, physical therapy, and nursing. The module will include video demonstrations of stretching and strengthening exercises that can be completed at work or at home. In addition, the video will contain clear video instruction on how to handle patients safely using assistive devices and proper body mechanics. The content will be designed and developed by the authors, with video capturing performed by a professional video production company .
This educational module is intended to raise awareness of musculoskeletal pain and injury in the clinical setting. The module will be available for public viewing online at Youtube and other sites. The video will be free of charge and will likely reduce injury and benefit healthcare providers globally, including both nurses as well as other clinical care personnel within the United States and around the world.