Assessing Postures and Mechanical Loads during Patient Transfers

Sandra Hellmers, Anna Brinkmann, Conrad Fifelski-Von Böhlen, Sandra Lau, Rebecca Diekmann, Andreas Hein

2021

Abstract

Socio-Demographic developments in industrialized countries cause a discrepancy between potential recipients and providers of care. Caregivers experience high musculoskeletal loads during their daily work, which leads to back complaints and a high rate of absenteeism at work. Ergonomically correct working can significantly reduce musculoskeletal load. In a study with 13 caregiver students, we analyzed body postures, muscle activities, and loads during the transfer of a patient from bed to wheelchair. Our measurement system consists of a full-body motion capture system and a Multi Kinect System. Additionally, muscle activities were measured via surface electromyography. According to recommendations for ergonomic working in the care sector, a system was developed that recognizes potentially harmful postures based on the motion capture data. A result report visualizes the skeleton model together with color-coded information about inclination and torsion angles. The motion capture data was also related to EMG data and analyzed according to biomechanical assumptions.

Paper Citation

in Harvard Style

Hellmers S., Brinkmann A., Böhlen C., Lau S., Diekmann R. and Hein A. (2021). Assessing Postures and Mechanical Loads during Patient Transfers. In Proceedings of the 14th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies (BIOSTEC 2021) - Volume 5: HEALTHINF; ISBN 978-989-758-490-9, SciTePress, pages 21-29. DOI: 10.5220/0010155300210029

in Bibtex Style

@conference{healthinf21,
author={Sandra Hellmers and Anna Brinkmann and Conrad Fifelski-Von Böhlen and Sandra Lau and Rebecca Diekmann and Andreas Hein},
title={Assessing Postures and Mechanical Loads during Patient Transfers},
booktitle={Proceedings of the 14th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies (BIOSTEC 2021) - Volume 5: HEALTHINF},
year={2021},
pages={21-29},
publisher={SciTePress},
organization={INSTICC},
doi={10.5220/0010155300210029},
isbn={978-989-758-490-9},
}

in EndNote Style

TY - CONF

JO - Proceedings of the 14th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies (BIOSTEC 2021) - Volume 5: HEALTHINF
TI - Assessing Postures and Mechanical Loads during Patient Transfers
SN - 978-989-758-490-9
AU - Hellmers S.
AU - Brinkmann A.
AU - Böhlen C.
AU - Lau S.
AU - Diekmann R.
AU - Hein A.
PY - 2021
SP - 21
EP - 29
DO - 10.5220/0010155300210029
PB - SciTePress