It has become the single most “must have” book for moving and handling instructors. The first edition was known as “The handling of patients. A guide for nurse managers” and published in 1981. Immediately it was seen as a very important document.

At £50 it is an expensive book, but it is cheaper than the consequences of not keeping yourself familiar with current guidelines. If you order your copy before October 31st, you will qualify for a 10% discount.

The 2nd edition followed in 1987 with the 3rd following in 1993. This third edition took on the new title of “The Guide to the Handling of Patients”. This new title stayed for the 1997 4th edition which was revised a year later. The growing importance of this book was signified by it’s longevity as it was the longest lived of all the editions so far staying with us until the arrival of the 5th edition which had another name change reflecting the fact that not all people who need assistance are, in fact, patients. The new title being “The Guide to the Handling of People”

So why the need for yet another edition, or has the human race evolved so much in the last 5 years as to require a whole new set of rules for movement?

Well, as stated on the backcare web site “The mission of this new 6th edition is to set out a person-centred systems approach, which balances the twin aims of (patient / person) safety, dignity and enablement with the prevention and management of work relevant MSDs in health and social care workers.” To be honest, I think this has been the general aim since the first edition.

It has been broken down into 4 sections as follows

Section 1
      The underpinning legal basis and toolkit for patient / person safety and

      injury prevention in health, social care and education
Section 2
       Key strategies (solutions focused approaches covering organisation,

      training systems, equipment, and work, health and well-being)
Section 3
       Practical chapters setting out core consensus best practice
Section 4
       Special circumstances, incorporating key pathways and case studies

      relating to bariatrics and the management of falls

The reality is, that this publication is often used as a starting point in any court case, so it is imperative that anyone who considers themselves to be “up-to-date” should have a copy of this book and ensure that they are familiar with it.

http://www.backcare.org.uk/270-6919/The-Guide-to-the-Handling-of-People-(6th-edition).html