Ambulance with back door cot lift?

[spenac]

Here you go. This unit is on the road 24/7.

[web:43120ee9d9]http://www.emt-inc.net/bariatric.htm[/web:43120ee9d9]

Thanks, what brand is this ambulance?

[buckeyedoc]

This is on the Wheeled Coach Custom Series E-450.

[Stretchermonkey]

Just a quickie in response to Eng542ine. I'm not sure I've read what was said correctly, but the 'Ferno' trolleys we use have a hydraulic system which is operated by a foot pedal, which will raise and lower the trolley. As such, when moving the trolley from ambo to scene or the other way round, the trolley can be raised to an appropriate height to make the handling easier/comfortable. Also, when transfering the patient from ambo trolley to hosp bed, the trolley can be raised to the same height as the hosp bed and the pt can get themselves over, or they can be slid over with a pat-slide.

Another point to consider is that if the pt is transfered to the ambo by carry chair, they can be lifted into the ambo on the tail lift. Therefore, not having to physically lift pt and chair.

Hope this helps.

[firespec35]

OK I can see this lift system being all well and good for bariatric patients but to use it all the time for every patient seems like overkill. Just learn how to lift. How many here remember 2 man stretchers. For those that are going "Huh" it was the original stretcher. You put your patient on it, brought your patient to the ambulance, The two of you lowered the stretcher to the lowest position and then the both of you lifted the whole thing into the ambulance. Now most shouldn't do this but I had an awesome partner. We could go 400 by ourselves without a lift assist.

Now before you all start screaming the risk is too much yadda yadda yadda. It's not that I advocate all of us going back to those. I just think lifting is a lost art in our business.

[buckeyedoc]

The lift is not used on every patient. In fact the lift is rarely used. We rely on lift assists unless the patient is just that heavy.

[Jess]

I think the lift is a wonderful idea as long as it's not turning into a habit to use it on every patient. I think it would cut the risk of injuries to the EMT in half. There is always that chance of Lifting someone and boom your back goes out and then you drop the pt. Even though you've never had back problems before. So in that aspect i think it would be pro to have around. But the con of it is people would rely on it too much and 'forget' how to properly lift. If for some reason that lift should fail, you'd have to do it manually, lot of good you'd be if you forgot how to lift properly and you end up hurting yourself. But around here it seems i see a lot of patients dropped because the EMTs aren't helping one another in lifting or something else goes wrong. Another positive point is it would leave every pt reassured that they are not going to get dropped. But i still think its important that EMS crews know their lifting techniques. I know when I got taken to the hospital last week, the EMTs we're having issues with the cot and scared me into thinking they couldn't handle loading me into the back of the truck. Lay on the cot and have a couple buddies try and load you in. its a scary view when your the one laying on the cot :wink:

[mountainman999]

Maybe it's just different attitudes showing from across the world but the technology exists to make our job safer so why not embrace it. Yes everybody who works on an ambulance should be able to lift but equally everybody who works on an ambulance should be looking to do the minimum amount of lifting.

Can your patient walk or is there a clinical reason why they should not?

We should be embracing things that make what we do safer such as PAT slides, transfer boards, glide sheets etc.

As a Uk volunteer most of our ambulances now have a back that will lower and a ramp that comes down agin to avoid lifting.

As for the comments "oh well how about we just keep it for the fat people" , Rember the vast majority of moving and handerling injuries are caused by cumulative bad practice not a one off incident.

The vast majority of NHS ambulances come with tail lifts.

[dahlio]

I personally believe that you need to be able to lift a good amount of weight. There are definitly patients that require more help than others. A good solution I believe is the Stryker Power-Pro. I've used it, and it works well. At about 100 pounds (only 19 pounds heavier then the MX-Pro), and a weight limit of 750 lbs (100lbs over the limit of the MX-Pro), it's a better solution to those who can't afford that nice lift. This cot might even go well with this lift, since you could raise the stretcher to roll them to the ambulance, and then lower them to the ramp. This way, you're not putting strain on your back, and the stretcher does all the work.

Just my two cents...

[ReD]

AMR in dallas has a retro fitted ambulance that they have ramps on and a winch at the base of the captains chair and a modified stryker.

i like the ramp idea, maybe rear door that comes down as a ramp like a small cargo trailer or a pull out ramp like on a u-haul truck. the lift aspect is really expensive and heavy and just alor more engineering to the truck which = more money.

you could retro fit or make one new for not much more that has ramps on it, and then just a regular powered stryker would work. if the pt isnt too heavy, load them the normal way, if they're too heavy, lower the cot all the way while on the ground and push it up the ramp, and if still too heavy, the AMR winch idea is pretty good, but a come-a-long would work just as well.

[spenac]

Maybe it's just different attitudes showing from across the world but the technology exists to make our job safer so why not embrace it. Yes everybody who works on an ambulance should be able to lift but equally everybody who works on an ambulance should be looking to do the minimum amount of lifting.

Can your patient walk or is there a clinical reason why they should not?

We should be embracing things that make what we do safer such as PAT slides, transfer boards, glide sheets etc.

As a Uk volunteer most of our ambulances now have a back that will lower and a ramp that comes down agin to avoid lifting.

As for the comments "oh well how about we just keep it for the fat people" , Rember the vast majority of moving and handerling injuries are caused by cumulative bad practice not a one off incident.

The vast majority of NHS ambulances come with tail lifts.

In the USA tail lifts are basically not to be found. I believe in embracing anything that helps me return home in same or better shape than when I went to work. I do agree we all need to remember how to work without it in case things go wrong which they probably will. Can you post some photos of some in operation if not to much trouble. Thanks.