New Case Study Details How an Illinois Hospital Created a Safe Lifting Team that Dramatically Reduced Injuries, Increased Staff Satisfaction

Franklin, Mass. – September 13, 2007 – A new, free white paper details how OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria, Illinois, has substantially reduced lift injuries while boosting staff satisfaction with the creation of a new lift team department that provides patient transfer and mobility assistance.

Available for free download at: www.safeliftingportal.com/st_francis, the paper is provided by the Safe Lifting Portal (www.safeliftingportal.com), a pro-bono healthcare site designed to support safe lifting and caregiver injury prevention programs.

Titled, “Illinois Hospital Reduces Lift Injuries, Staff Satisfaction Soars with Lift Team Department and Liko Lifts,” the free case study describes how the new safe lifting department was originally created to curtail increasing lift injuries and growing worker’s compensation costs. It then evolved into a dedicated patient lift team department that provides 24/7 lifting assistance to the staff and patients in all areas.

Implementing the program at Saint Francis, a 616-bed, Level I, trauma facility, has reduced staff injuries associated with patient handling activities by 30%, slashed more than 1,200 restricted work days, and generated an estimated $400,000 in savings that has been re-invested back into St. Francis’s safe patient handling program and lift team department.

The case study details the design, development and implementation of the comprehensive program, including the tracking of injuries, rating and selection of lifting equipment, extensive training of staff to become “Lift Team Technicians,” education of patients and caregivers, and measurement of patient and staff satisfaction.

Download the free case study, “Illinois Hospital Reduces Lift Injuries, Staff Satisfaction Soars with Lift Team Department and Liko Lifts,” at: www.safeliftingportal.com/st_francis or call toll-free 1 888-545-6671.

The Safe Lifting Portal (www.safeliftingportal.com) is sponsored by Liko North America, one of the world’s leading suppliers of patient lift and transfer solutions. Liko North America’s products include mobile lifts, overhead ceiling mounted systems, and a variety of injury prevention solutions. For more information, contact Liko North America, 122 Grove Street, Franklin, MA 02038; telephone (888) 545-6671 or (508) 553-3993; fax (508) 528-6642; or visit the website at www.liko.com/na.

# # #

Note to editors: High resolution images are available for download at: http://www.flickr.com/gp/10956940@N08/X5A6UY

Press Contacts:
Don Goncalves, Tiziani Whitmyre, Inc., 781-793-9380, dgoncalves@tizinc.com
Brandie Gerrish, Tiziani Whitmyre, Inc., 781-793-9380, bgerrish@tizinc.com