Manual handling--a review of the new legislation

There can be no doubt that one of the greatest hazards that a nurse faces during the course of his or her career is the manual handling of patients. Of the 4,580 handling accidents that were reported to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in 1990, 70% of them involved the handling of patients. The dangers of manual handling were acknowledged in the 1961 Factories Act and the 1963 Offices, Shops and Railway Premises Act, both of which stated, 'No person shall be employed to lift a load so heavy as to be likely to cause injury to him.' This statement was, however, too broad. It was difficult to interpret. What is so heavy as to be likely to cause injury? This problem of interpretation also made enforcement troublesome.