LIFTING SLINGS

ELINGUE DE LEVAGE

English Abstract

There is disclosed a disposable or limited use lifting sling formed of non- woven material. The sling has a main back portion with lower end dependent leg support portions and an upper end head support extension. The main back portion is formed of only a single non-woven layer of material. The material may have an embossed pattern produced by rolling to give it the appearance of a woven fabric. A method of preventing cross-infection between patients lifted in body support slings suspended from a lifting hoist is also disclosed wherein each patient has his/her own dedicated sling formed of non-woven material.

French Abstract

On divulgue une élingue de levage jetable ou à usage limité formée de matériel non-tissé. L'élingue comporte une partie arrière principale avec des parties inférieures dépendantes de support pour les jambes et une extension supérieure de support pour la tête. La partie arrière principale est formée de seulement une unique couche de matériel non-tissé. Le matériel peut avoir un motif en relief produit par laminage pour lui donner l'apparence d'un tissu tissé. Une méthode de prévention des infections croisées entre patients levés dans l'élingue de support corporel suspendue à un palan de levage est également décrite dans laquelle chaque patient a son élingue dédiée formée de matériel non-tissé.

Claims

8
The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege
is
claimed are defined as follows:
1. A disposable or limited used lifting sling formed of non-woven material,
wherein
suspension means are attached to the sling by a soluble thread.
2. A sling as claimed in claim 1, which is made of chemically bonded fabric.
3. A sling as claimed in claim 1, which is made of heat bonded randomly
orientated
polymer fibres.
4. A sling as claimed in claim 1, which has been made by hydroentangling.
5. A sling as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the non-woven
fabric has
been rolled to give the appearance of woven material.
6. A sling as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the sling is in the
form of
a one-piece body support sling which will support the back and thighs of a
patient.
7. A sling as claimed in claim 6, wherein two attachment points are provided
at the
sides of the sling in the shoulder region and two attachment points are
provided at the
bottom end of the sling.
8. A sling as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7, comprising a main portion
which
supports the body of a person and lower end dependent leg portions which in
use
respectively extend beneath and upwardly between the thighs of a patient.
9. A sling as claimed in claim 8, further comprising an upper end head-support
extension.
10. A sling as claimed in claim 9, wherein one or more reinforcements extend
substantially throughout the extension and for a distance between a line
joining the sling
attachment points in the shoulder region of the sling.

9
11. A sling as claimed in claim 10, wherein the main portion of the sling is
formed of
only a single non-woven layer of material.
12. A sling as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein darts are
provided in the
sling so that the sling more readily conforms to the body shape of the person
being lifted.
13. A sling as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the sling is
reinforced
and/or padded in regions.
14. A method of preventing cross-infection between patients lifted in body
support
slings suspended from a lifting hoist, wherein each patient has his/her own
dedicated
sling formed of non-woven material, wherein suspension means are attached to
the sling
by a soluble thread.
15. A method as claimed in claim 14, wherein each sling is clearly marked to
identify
the patient for whom the sling is intended.

Description

CA 02244758 2009-07-07
I
LIFTING SLINGS
INTRODUCTION
This invention relates to lifting slings for use with invalid hoists, and is
particularly but not exclusively concerned with one-piece lifting slings for
that purpose.
Such slings support the back and thighs of a patient, being suspended from the
hoist by
detachable suspension means such as straps or the like.
Known slings are formed from woven, synthetic textile material and are
relatively
expensive to make. The slings are used, inter alia, to transport patients,
e.g. to the
toilet. Accidents do occur and cross-infection between patients has become a
major
issue. As a result, some hospitals have banned the use of slings.
Laundering does not always kill off the organisms which cause infections,
particularly when laundering at temperatures which the slings will withstand.
As a
result, slings have been laundered and, more particularly, dried at
temperatures greater
than the slings willwithstand in an attempt to kill off all infectious
organisms and this has
resulted in the destruction of slings.
Also, slings are lost or damaged in transit between place of use and laundry
and
sufficient slings are needed so that one sling can be put to use while another
is being
laundered and yet another is in transit between place of use and the laundry.

CA 02244758 2009-07-07
2
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a disposable
or
limited used lifting sling formed of non-woven material, wherein suspension
means are
attached to the sling by a soluble thread.
It has been found that such slings can be made at a fraction of the cost of
slings
of woven material and will withstand the forces applied to them. It is,
therefore,
possible to dedicate slings to individual persons and to dispose of the slings
after limited
use so as to avoid the risk of cross-infection. The slings can be
appropriately marked,
such as with indelible ink, to ensure they are not used for other persons.
The slings can be formed by various different techniques including chemical
bonding, heat bonding or hydroentangling and are typically formed of
polypropylene
and/or polyester.
The non-woven fabric can be rolled to give the appearance of woven material.
Ideally, it should not be possible to launder the slings so as to avoid re-use
and,
to this end, it is envisaged that seams are secured, and suspension means are
attached,
to the sling by a soluble thread so that the slings will fall apart if
laundering of the slings
is attempted.
The slings are, preferably, one-piece body support slings which will support
the

CA 02244758 2009-07-07
3
baok and thighs of a patient. Four point attachment of the suspension means
will be
required, with two attachment points at the sides of the sling in the shoulder
region and
two attachment points at the bottom end of the sling. The sling,
advantageously
comprises a main portion which supports the body of a person and lower end
dependent
leg portions which in use respectively extend beneath and upwardly between the
thighs
of the patient. The sling may also have an upper end head-support extension.
In this
case, the sling may have two further attachment points at the head region or
may have
one or more reinforcements extending substantially throughout the extension
and for a
distance beyond a line joining the sling attachment points in the shoulder
region of the
sling.
The sling may be provided with darts or may be otherwise shaped so that it
conforms more readily to the body shape of a person being lifted. It may also
be
reinforced and/or padded in regions.
According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a method of
preventing cross-infection between patients lifted in body support slings
suspended from
a lifting hoist, wherein each patient has his/her own dedicated sling formed
of non-woven
material, wherein suspension means are attached to the sling by a soluble
thread.
Preferably, each sling is clearly marked to identify the patient for whom the
sling
is intended.

CA 02244758 2009-07-07
4
According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of
preventing cross-infection between patients lifted in body support slings
suspended from
a lifting hoist, wherein each patient has his /her own dedicated sling formed
of material
by a non-woven process.

CA 02244758 1998-08-11
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE D~itAWING
The single Figure is a side perspective view illustrating one embodiment of a
sling according to the invention and shown in use with a supported invalid.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIlviENT
5 Referring to the drawing, there is shown therein a one-piece sling 10
comprising
a main back portion 11 with lower end dependent leg support portions 12 and an
upper
end head support extension 13. The main portion 11 supports the back and
shoulders
of a suspended invalid I with the portions 12 respectively extend beneath and
up
between the thighs of the invalid whose head H is supported by the extension
13. Short
extension tapes 14 providing suspension means are stitched to the main portion
11 in the
shoulder regions thereof and suspension tapes 15 are similarly stitched to.
the ends of the
leg support portions 12.
The sling 10 is made of non-woven polymeric material, typically polypropylene
and/or polyester, and it is tailored to conform more closely to the shape of
the invalid
I and thus provide increased comfort for the latter. To this end, darts 16 are
provided
in the sling 10.
Typically, the sling 10 is made by heat bonding randomly orientated polymer
fibres, but it could be made of drylaid, chemic,ally bonded fabric or of
drylaid, spunlace
fabric (hydroentangled). This material does breathe but does not pass water
and it may
be necessary to provide perforations in the sling if it is to be used for
lowering invalids

CA 02244758 1998-08-11
6
into a bath.
The sling 10 is, preferably, provided with an embossed pattem by rolling to
give
it the appearance of a woven fabric.
The sling 10 may be reinforced by an additional layer of fabric in regions
where
the suspension tapes 14 and 15 are stitched to the sling and the leg portions
12 may have
padding between two layers of the non-woven fabric to increase comfort for the
invalid.
These slings can be made at a fraction of the cost of woven slings and are
intended as disposable or liniited use slings which are dedicated to
individual persons to
avoid the risk of cross-infection.
In order to support the head support extension 13, the sling may have one or
more reinforcements extending substantially throughout the extension 13 and
for a
distance along the line joining to *the points where the extension tapes 14
are stitched to
the main portion 11. Alternatively, two further suspension tapes (not shown)
may be
connected to the head region.
The sling illustrated in the drawing is used with a hoist 20 having a
cantilever
lifting arm 21 supporting a sling hanger 22 from which the sling 10 is
directly suspended.
Only the outer end of the lifting arm 21 is shown, and the hanger 22 is
connected to the

CA 02244758 1998-08-11
7
arm through a forked connection 23. The connection 23 is mounted in a bearing
24
providing a vertical pivot axis at the end of the arm 21 and it is pivotally
connected to
the hanger 22 at points 23a. The arrangement is such that the hanger 22 can
turn about
the rigid vertical axis at the outer end of the arm 21, with the hanger 22 and
the
connection 23 turning as one about this vertical axis, and the hanger 22 is
pivotable on
the connection 23 about a transverse horizontal axis defined by the pivot
points 23a.
A sling as descrtbed herein has been subjected to fifty lifts lifting 250Kg
and a
further fifty lifts lifting 194Kg and has withstood this test without any sign
of weakening.
Ideally, it should not be possible to launder the slings. This will avoid re-
use.
To this end, it is envisaged that the seams may be secured, and the suspension
tapes
attached to the sling, by a soluble thread so that the slings will fall apart
if laundering is
attempted.
The invention is not limited to one-piece lifting slings, but may also be
applied
to other lifting slings. Also, one-piece lifting slings are not always
provided with a head
extension.

Representative Drawing