An unsteady patient in an unfamiliar environment is a risk to themselves and a risk to others

Clinicians should have had basic manual handling training, which teaches the safest methods of assisting walking, assisting seated to standing, assisting seated to seated. There are manual handling aids, such as boards to assist sliding a patient from chair to chair.

Poor moving and manual handling techniques can result in injury to the staff member and affect the dignity for the person being moved.

If a patient requires more than just a stabling hand or manual handling aids are not available, then you must seek assistance from colleagues with advanced manual handling training.

Some patients may not be able to walk or stand. The greatest difficulty here will be to determine their accurate height and weight. Some conditions may also affect patient height such as kyphosis and scoliosis. Whilst the weight measurement will not affect the predicted values, the height measurement certainly will.

An alternative to measuring height is to measure the patient’s arm span instead. There are various correction factors which may be used, however consider the intra-subject variability in arm length and interpret predicted values with a degree of care.

When the arms are fully stretched out horizontally to the side, measure across the chest from the furthest point of fingertip to fingertip.

Record clearly on the spirometry report that arm-span was measured to determine height. If weight was estimated also make a record of this.