Short Communication
Year: 2023 | Month: April | Volume: 13 | Issue: 4 | Pages: 62-72
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijhsr.20230410
Design of an Indigenously Developed Patient Transfer Assistive Device
Manoj Kumar Tiwari1, Deepak P. Prabhu2, Akshay Chavan3, Anuja Sharma4, Mukta Tiwari5, Mrunali Kalkotwar6
1,2,3,4,6Department of Prosthetics and Orthotics, All India Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Mumbai, India
5Indian Institute of Technology, Bhilai, India
Corresponding Author: Manoj Kumar Tiwari
ABSTRACT
The patient transfer has always been challenging, usually requiring a number of caregivers to perform this task together, which is time-consuming and can easily cause secondary injuries to the patient. In addition, when the world is in the distressing predicament of a global pandemic covid-19, the issue of patient transfer is even more critical, as caregivers are at a high risk of infection, causing significant damage to healthcare resources. The goal of using assistive devices is to minimize the risk of injury. A lifting device is an assistive device that allows patients in hospitals, nursing homes, and those receiving health care at home to be transferred between a bed and a wheelchair or other similar resting places using different lifting mechanisms. By choosing appropriate equipment and using it effectively, the risk of sustaining an injury is significantly reduced, and the quality of life for all concerned is often noticeably improved. This work aimed to propose a design of a lightweight, durable, and ergonomic assistive patient transfer device named “Patient Lifting Hoist” (PLH); it can assist caregivers in transferring patients, reduce direct contact between them, and avoid secondary musculoskeletal injuries for use in hospitals and homes. The authors concentrated on the partial elimination of manual lifting in order to device could work in two situations: with or without electricity. In the mechanical structure of this assistive device, a chain-drive mechanism and motorized jack lifting mechanism are proposed; they are the key points to the fundamental functional realization of the device and can reduce the cost of the prototype. Furthermore, the device can operate remotely, and a control strategy is applied to ensure the operation's stability and safety. Finally, some preliminary experiments are carried out to verify the device's reliability and lay the foundation for the clinical tests.
Key words: assistive, caregivers, device, injury, lifting, mechanism, transfer