The term sling lift is also known as "Hoyer Lift" which refers to the oldest and most common brand name. The basic design for the sling lift was patented in 1955 by R.R. Stratton, and titled "Floor Crane with Adjustable Legs" (US patent 2706120 ). According to the patent, the lift's design was based on a similar device used in "automotive repair shops" which is described as a "floor crane available for lifting engines and other heavy parts".

Some variations of the sling involve the placement of a padded sling under the patient. When the patient is elevated, these pads hold the patient in place. Other kinds of specialized slings are toileting slings, amputee slings, quadriplegic slings (contain additional head support), showering slings and repositioning slings (for turning or sliding patients in bed), disposable slings (for enhanced infection control), and stretcher slings (for supine transfer). It is important that medical staff do an assessment of the patient's size, weight, and medical condition in order to select the proper sling to avoid injuring the patient during transfer. To reduce the risk of cross infection which is of critical importance in hospitals, the slings are often disposable or patient specific.

Another kind of sling lift, which is called a ceiling lift, can be permanently installed on the ceiling of a room in order to save space[5]. Floor sling lifts usually have a wheeled base that requires additional space on the side of the patient's bed during transfer. The ceiling lift eliminates this space issue because the patient is supported by ceiling tracks instead of by the wheeled base. Ceiling lifts use the same sling technology as floor sling lifts. However, they usually have a "track system" attached to the ceiling for horizontal movement of the patient within the patient's room and often into an adjoining bathroom. Ceiling lifts also use an overhead electric motor (i.e., they are not hydraulic) controlled by a hand-held set of push buttons to raise and lower the patient. In most cases, the same overhead motor is used to move the patient horizontally, but such movement is limited by the placement of the overhead ceiling track system.

Sling lifts (both ceiling lifts and floor lifts) are available with an integrated patient scale which saves time since the patient can be weighed during transfer.

The role of Safe Patient Handling Programs

There has been considerable effort put forth by nursing advocacy groups (see the American Nursing Association's "Handle With Care" program at http://www.Nursingworld.org and http://www.anasafepatienthandling.org ) to encourage hospitals and nursing homes to adopt "zero-lift" or "no-lift" programs in order to prevent orthopedic injuries in healthcare workers. However such programs, which require the use of mechanical lifting aids, are sometimes difficult to implement. This is in part due to the time and effort required to safely use lift equipment. Transferring a patient with a lift takes between three and six minutes which is considerably longer than moving a patient manually. Lift manufacturers emphasize that added time it takes to use lifts is worthwhile since mechanical lifting aids improve caregiver and patient safety and while also preventing patient falls.

One approach that has been used successfully is to create a facility "lift team" that is on call (usually 12 hours a day), and specializes in moving patients. This eliminates a number of issues mentioned above since the lift team brings the lift with them to the patient's room, maintains it in proper working order, is knowledgeable in the use of the lift, has special expertise in sling selection, and can move patients quickly and safely. The downside of the lift team is that the team(s) may be busy when needed, and patients who need to be mobilized quickly to meet schedules must wait for a team to become available. Most lift teams seek to guarantee that they will arrive in the patient's room and begin transfer in less than 20 minutes after the nurse makes a request for service.

Safe patient handling is especially important in the area of bariatric care. Bariatric patients who are classified as patient who weigh more than 300 pounds require additional staff training and specialized equipment for transfer, showering, toileting, etc.

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