Lifting Obese Patients Strains Georgia Firefighters

Overweight individuals in the Golden Isles are posing more than a health risk to themselves. They are also jeopardizing the health of firefighters who help them after accidents.

The most common injury Glynn County firefighters and emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, report has less to do with fighting fires and more to do with getting heavy individuals out of small places.

According to a Glynn County report of worker's compensation claims, $161,922 has been paid since 2000 to nine firefighters or medical staff injured while placing patients on stretchers or carrying them down stairs.

In an attempt to reduce the injuries, the fire department has purchased new equipment designed to reduce the manual effort required to move patients, Fire Chief Al Thomas said.

"We've done some things in the past with our stretchers and our stair chairs to mitigate some of those issues," he said. The department purchased stretchers equipped with electric motors which raise and lower patients, so emergency staff doesn't have to.

It also bought devices to help move patients down stairs and out of multi-story buildings without putting great strain on staff, Thomas said.

In addition, the county encourages firefighters and emergency medical technicians to stay in shape, he said.

"We do annual physicals for our people and encourage a wellness program for them to maintain and improve their fitness," Thomas said.

Still, even with the right equipment and training, some situations can't be prepared for, Thomas said.

"We researched things that would help the firefighters and EMTs. Some of the tools we've got will help slide a patient through an area to a better position," Thomas said. "But with homes, businesses and stairwells -- then you have automobile accidents -- patients are often just in awkward positions. You can only get so many people and so much equipment to them."

In 2010, the Georgia Department of Public Health reported 30 percent of adults in the state were obese. Coastal Georgia had the second highest obesity rate in the state, with 27 to 29 percent of adults obese, according to department data.

Obesity can cause serious health risks, including stroke, diabetes, cancer and other diseases, according to the public health department.

Copyright 2012 - The Brunswick News, Ga.

McClatchy-Tribune News Service