Abstract:
The present invention relates to a patient transfer device including an overhead boom connected to a winch comprising a strap, wherein a free length of said strap can be adjusted by means of said winch and an end of said strap is adapted to be connected to a transfer sheet by means of connection means provided at an end of said strap, wherein said transfer sheet is adapted to be moved from a first surface to a second surface by means of an adjustment of said free length

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The invention relates to a patient transfer device for transferring a patient from a first surface to a second surface. 
         [0003]    2. The Prior Art 
         [0004]    Humans and/or mammals subjected to medical treatment are frequently incapacitated, for example patients can still be anesthetized following an operation or simply be either momentarily or permanently handicapped because of a medical condition. To now ensure a transfer of the patient from the operating table or an examination table to e.g. a hospital bed and/or a stretcher for transport to the hospital bed it is known to use transfer sheets. 
         [0005]    Such transfer sheets are generally made of a low friction material or are coated with a low friction material to facilitate the movement thereof. To then move the patient following e.g. a medical procedure which has just been carried out on an operating table in an operating theatre the patient is moved from the operating table to a stretcher by medical practitioners who take a hold of the transfer sheet and then hoist the patient to the stretcher using the transfer sheet. This requires relatively strong medical practitioners and due to the abrupt movements involved can subject the patient to unnecessary pain and also e.g. cause fresh sutures to split open and thereby cause the patient needless harm. 
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    The object of the present invention is to provide an improved transfer device to ensure an effortless transfer of the patient from e.g. an operating table to e.g. a stretcher which transfer device simultaneously reduces the danger of harming the patient. 
         [0007]    This object is satisfied in accordance with claim  1 . The dependent claims are directed at preferred embodiments of the apparatus in accordance with the invention. 
         [0008]    A patient transfer device in accordance with the invention includes an overhead boom connected to a winch comprising a strap, wherein a free length of said strap can be adjusted by means of said winch and an end of said strap is adapted to be connected to a transfer sheet by means of connection means provided at an end of said strap, wherein said transfer sheet is adapted to be moved from a first surface to a second surface by means of an adjustment of said free length. 
         [0009]    Since the patient transfer sheet is now attached to a winch via a strap, the medical practitioners no longer have to be physically strong to transfer the patient, but can rather direct their attention towards the patient and ensure a smooth transfer of the patient from the operating table to the stretcher. Moreover, as the winch is connected to an overhead boom the winch can be moved to and from an operating table or a stretcher as required, without having to be installed at the stretcher, which means that all hospital suits having an overhead boom can simply be retrofitted with such a winch device and do not need to replace existing stretchers to facilitate the transfer of a patient. 
         [0010]    As present hospital installations can simply be retrofitted with patient transfer devices considerable costs can be saved on implementation thereof. Moreover, as the transfer sheet is now moved by means of a winch rather than by means of the medical practitioner&#39;s physical strength a much smoother transfer of the patent can be achieved which is extremely beneficial for the wellbeing of a patient, as no jerky upward and sideways movements arise. 
         [0011]    Advantageously a rod is connected to a side of said transfer sheet. This provides the transfer sheet with lateral stiffness in a direction parallel to the patient&#39;s body and ensures a smoother transfer of the patient from the first surface to the second surface. 
         [0012]    Preferably said rod cooperates with said connection means, so that the strap whose free length is adjusted by means of the winch can be attached to the transfer sheet in a simple and flexible manner and ensure a relatively fast assembly of the transfer device to expedite the patient transfer. 
         [0013]    The connection means can be selected from the group comprising a hook, a snap hook and a loop, such devices facilitate a quick connection of the patient transfer device. It should be noted that the transfer sheet is only moved when said first surface is directly adjacent to said second surface, to ensure that e.g. the patient does not fall between the operating table and the hospital bed. 
         [0014]    Advantageously said rod causes a substantially equal force distribution along said side of said transfer sheet perpendicular to a direction of movement of said transfer sheet. This force arises due to the length adjustment of the strap and/or in the case of the winch failing a movement of said boom. 
         [0015]    Generally speaking said transfer sheet is a low friction transfer sheet composed of material selected from the group including Teflon, Teflon coated materials, nylon, nylon coated materials and/or carbon coated materials. The transfer sheet is generally adapted to transfer a human or an animal patient, such as a horse. Furthermore, the transfer sheet can either be sterilized or is a sterile transfer sheet, so that the patient is not unnecessarily subjected to germs and such like during a medical procedure. 
         [0016]    Advantageously, the winch is mounted at a platform. This platform ensures that all devices required to operate the winch can be mounted at one and the same physical position. Moreover, this platform can be aligned adjacent to the second surface to simplify the movement of the transfer sheet to the second surface. 
         [0017]    Advantageously said platform is connected to said boom, thereby stabilizing the patient transfer device, as the platform offers a generally larger interface between the winch and the boom than a direct connection between the winch and the boom. Moreover, the platform enables an improved alignment of the winch with respect to the first and second surface. 
         [0018]    Advantageously said platform has an abutment surface facing a side of said second surface. Said abutment surface is adapted to be brought into contact with said side to facilitate a stable movement of said transfer sheet from said first surface to said second surface, as the winch positioned on the platform can now be aligned in an improved manner along the second surface. During the reeling in of the strap, i.e. the transfer sheet, the abutment surface provides stability to the overall transfer device. 
         [0019]    Advantageously, said platform is adapted to be connected to an equipment column, so that medical devices e.g. required during an operation or a medical examination can be stored in close proximity to the winch and do not require that the patient transfer device be disconnected from the boom during an operation so that a medical professional can utilize the medical devices provided at the equipment column even when the winch is installed there. 
         [0020]    Advantageously said first surface or said second surface is one of a hospital stretcher, a hospital bed, an operating table and an examination table. This means that any form of bed typically available in a hospital is capable of being utilized as a first surface and/or a second surface provided that these can be brought into the range of a boom, so that said patient transfer device can be utilized. 
         [0021]    Advantageously a movement of said winch which effects said free length adjustment is caused by a drive. 
         [0022]    The use of a drive, such as a crank handle, an electric drive, a hydraulic drive or a pneumatic drive, means that a medical practitioner can use even less or absolutely no physical strength to move the patient on the transfer sheet by means of the transfer device in accordance with the present invention. 
         [0023]    Advantageously said movement of said transfer sheet is adapted to be actuated by means of a remote control. This has particular advantages when a patient is being moved following a complex operation, as the medical practitioner carrying out the transfer of the patient from the first surface to the second surface can now simply monitor the movement and the well being of a patient at the same time as he/she controls control the movement of the patient while also monitoring the patient&#39;s status. 
         [0024]    In an embodiment said remote control is provided at said platform. In a further embodiment said remote control is provided at said boom. A remote control stored at either the boom, the platform or even the winch is stored away for easy reach and is then always available when using that piece of equipment. 
         [0025]    The remote control can have a wireless interface via which it communicates with the winch. Alternatively it could be directly connected to the platform/winch device to prevent any miscommunications with other medical devices present in the surrounding space taking place. The remote control can advantageously have a control which controls the speed of transfer of the patient. The remote control can also be coupled to the boom to adjust the height of the winch device relative to the first and second surface. 
         [0026]    In an embodiment a vertical arm is connected between said boom and said winch. This vertical arm allows a vertical alignment of said winch with respect to the horizontal upper surfaces of said surfaces. Moreover, it enables said winch to be used with any overhead boom as advantageously the length of said vertical arm is simply selected for the appropriate height of the hospital ward. 
         [0027]    Advantageously said boom has at least one horizontal arm, i.e. a one-armed boom, a two-armed boom or even a three-armed boom can be used in the apparatus in accordance with the invention. 
         [0028]    The advantageous features of the invention are described in an exemplary manner only and are not intended to restrict the inventive apparatus in any way or form. 
         [0029]    The invention will be described in the following with regard to further features and advantages by way of examples with reference to embodiments in the enclosed drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0030]      FIG. 1  a schematic side view of an embodiment of the patient transfer device in accordance with the invention; 
           [0031]      FIG. 2A  a schematic top view of a further embodiment of the invention in a first position; 
           [0032]      FIG. 2B  a top view of the embodiment of  FIG. 2A  in a second position; 
           [0033]      FIG. 3  a further embodiment depicting part of the components of a patient transfer device in accordance with the invention; 
           [0034]      FIG. 4  a schematic representation of a medical column attached to a boom; and 
           [0035]      FIG. 5  a further schematic representation of a medical column attached to a boom. 
       
    
    
       [0036]    Features having the same or similar function will be described in the following using the same reference numerals. 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0037]      FIG. 1  shows a schematic side view of a patient transfer device  10 . A patient  12  is currently positioned on a low friction transfer sheet  14  on an operating table  16 . Attached to the transfer sheet  14  is a rod  18  connected to a strap  20  via a hook  22 . The strap  20  is adapted to be wound up onto a winch  24  placed on a platform  26 . An abutment surface  28  of the platform  26  is contacting a side  30  of a hospital stretcher  32  via the abutment surface  28  to impart stability to the transfer device  10  when the strap  20  included in the winch  24  is wound up or reeled in by the winch  24  to transfer the patient  12  from the operating table  16  to the stretcher  32 . 
         [0038]    A remote control  34  is attached to the platform  26  by means of which the winch  24 , of the patient transfer device  10 , can be actuated. The remote control  34  can either be a wireless remote control  34  or be connected directly to the platform  26 . The remote control  34  can control and regulate the speed at which the winch  24  reels in the strap  20  and for this reason can control the speed of movement of the strap  20 . In a different embodiment the remote control  34  can also be attachable to the boom  36 . 
         [0039]    Attached to the platform  26  is an equipment column  38 , which can include medical devices such as scalpels, pincers and such like (not shown) and/or be adapted to include medical devices required to monitor a patient&#39;s condition (also not shown) e.g. the heart rate and breathing rate of a patient  12  during anesthesia or a different medical procedure. A vertical arm  40  is connected between the two-armed boom  36  suspended from a ceiling via a pivot point  42  and the platform  26 . Preferably the vertical position of the platform  26  connected to the vertical arm  40  can be adjusted relative to the vertical arm  40 . Preferably the change in vertical position of the platform  26  can be actuated by means of the remote control  34 . 
         [0040]    On activation of the winch  24  the strap  20  connected between the winch  24  and the rod  18  is wound up within the winch device  24 , i.e. a free length of the strap  20  is reduced to facilitate the movement of the transfer sheet  14  from the operating table  16  to the hospital stretcher  32 . This is generally carried out following a medical procedure to move the patient  12  out of the operating theatre to e.g. a wake-up room or to a hospital ward for post-operative treatment (not shown). 
         [0041]    As the strap  20  is connected to the transfer sheet  14  by means of a hook  22  connected to the rod  18  this can simply be released  5  from the rod  18  following the transfer of the patient  12 . Alternatively the hook  22  can simply be connected to the rod  18  to carry out with the transfer of the patient  12 . As the winch  24  is mounted to a platform  26  connected to the boom  36  this can be moved to and fro in the hospital room according to the maximum range available to the boom  36 , preferably such that the stretcher  32  and/or the operation table  16  can be moved past the winch device  24  and out of the operating theatre when required. 
         [0042]      FIG. 2A  shows a further embodiment in which a loop  22  is provided as a connection means  22  to connect the strap  20  to the rod  18  connected to the transfer sheet  14 . The transfer device  10  is in a first position, i.e. in a position where the patient  12  is still on the examination table  16  and is about to be moved to a hospital bed  32  by means of the transfer sheet  14  lying between the patient  12  and the examination table  16 . 
         [0043]      FIG. 2B  shows the patient  12  now lying on the hospital bed  32  having been moved from the examination table  16  by means of the transfer device  10 . For this purpose the free length of the strap  20  has been reduced by means of the winch  24  to move the transfer sheet  14 , and hence the patient  12 , from the examination table  16  to the hospital bed  32 . The equipment column  38  shown in the embodiment of  FIGS. 2A and 2B  also acts at the connection between the boom  36  and the platform  26 . 
         [0044]      FIG. 3  shows a further embodiment in which the rod  18  is connected to the transfer sheet  10  via four loops  46  simply sewn into a side  48  of the transfer sheet  14 . This is particularly beneficial as this allows the rod  18  to be removed from the transfer sheet  14  during the medical procedure to improve the access to the patient  12  during the procedure. Following the procedure the rod  18  is simply placed through the four loops  46  to ensure a smooth transfer of the patient  12  from the operating table  16 . Naturally a plurality of loops  46  can be attached to the side  48  of the transfer sheet  14  (not shown), or a single passage can be formed by one loop  46  along the complete side  48  of the transfer sheet  14 , to allow the introduction and removal of the rod  18  (see e.g.  FIG. 1 ). Moreover, the rod  18  is connected to the free length of the strap  20  via a snap-on hook  22 . A snap on hook  22  ensures a fast and reliable connection between the rod  18  and the free length of the strap  20 . 
         [0045]    In the embodiment of  FIG. 3  a one-armed boom  36  is used. The vertical arm  40  connecting the platform  26  to the winch  24  is attached to the boom  36  via a boom trolley (not shown) which is adapted to move to and fro along the length of the boom  36 . This permits the movement of the platform  26  and thus the patient transfer device  10  in a desired manner throughout the hospital room. 
         [0046]    The rod  18  connected to the low friction transfer sheet  14  is preferably made of from a relatively strong light weight material, such as aluminum, glass fiber or wood coated with a plastic coating, provided the material is suitable for deflecting the loads arising due to the movement of the patient  12  from a first surface  16  to the second surface  32 . The winch  24  used is preferably a winch driven by an electronic drive (not shown), so that a step-less transition of the patient  12  can be ensured. The strap  20  connecting the winch  24  to the rod  18  is either a leather strap  20 , a strap  20  made of plastic material or such like. 
         [0047]      FIG. 4  shows the winch  24  attached to the bottom of the equipment column  38  which has an assortment of trays provided in which medical tools such as scalpels, syringes, clamps and other medical devices required by a surgeon during an invasive procedure can be stored. In this embodiment the platform  26  has two abutment surfaces  28  attached to its end which faces the second surface  32  during the transfer of a patient  12  following the medical procedure. 
         [0048]      FIG. 5  shows an example in which the winch  24  is integrated into an equipment column  38  in which the platform  26  is formed by the base of the equipment column  38 , adjacent to the base  26  of the equipment column  38  are two metal surfaces  28  which act as the abutment surfaces  28 . As can be seen from  FIG. 5  the pivot point  42  of the single armed boom  36  acts as a cable passage for electrical cables  50 , which provide power to the medical column, fluid cables, which can provide fluids required for the wellbeing of a patient during an operation, and data lines  52  for storing medical data associated with a patient  12  and measured during an operation with the monitoring equipment stored in the equipment column  38 . 
         [0049]    In both of the examples of an equipment column  38  shown in  FIG. 4  and in  FIG. 5  the winch  24  is integrated into the equipment column  38  and can be actuated via the remote control  34  incorporated with the platform  26  at the equipment column. The abutment surfaces  28  of the equipment columns  38  of  FIGS. 4 and 5  are both adapted to contact a side  30  of the second surface  32  to stabilize the transfer of a patient using the patient transfer device  10 .