Access to Medical Care for Individuals with Mobility Disabilities

Typical Transfer Techniques: Staff Assistance and Patient Lifts

Some individuals will need additional assistance to get on and off an exam table, even if it lowers to 17‒19 inches from the floor. The kind of assistance needed will depend on the patient’s disability. The provider should ask the patient if he or she needs assistance, and if so, what is the best way to help and what extra equipment, if any, is needed.

Some individuals will need only a steady hand from a staff person in order to transfer safely to the exam table. Other individuals will need simple tools such as a transfer board (a product made of a smooth rigid material which acts as a supporting bridge between a wheelchair and another surface, along which the individual slides) or sheet. Individuals using a transfer board may need assistance from a staff person.

Assisted transfer using a transfer board and gait belt with handles

1.Gait belt with handles assists with guiding along transfer board

2.Transfer or sliding board acts as a bridge between wheelchair seat and table surface

Patients who can complete an independent transfer may prefer to do so for reasons of safety and simplicity.