[MCOH-EH] Morgue injuries

[Abhijay Karandikar]

Cross posting from the OEM list serv. Apologies for the double e-mails to those who subscribe to both lists.

I was looking for opinions on the following issue:

There has been an increase in employee injuries at a hospital morgue. The issue at hand is positioning bodies high enough such that they are placed on slides of the topmost bays (bays are stacked one above the other). The bodies are placed on a repositioning sheet held by slings and are lifted by a mechanical lift/hoist. The lift is not high enough, however. This means that no matter what sling/sheet is used, employees still have to push bodies into the top bays. This results in shoulder/upper back injuries as well as increases the risk of exposure to body fluids since they can drain on to the employees as they are under the body pushing them to the bay.  

Has anyone had similar issues? If yes, what processes/equipment did you implement to reduce such injuries?

Thanks,
Abhijay

Abhijay P. Karandikar, MD, MPH, FACOEM