Hospitals groan under weight of heavy patients

updated 6:59 p.m. ET March 31, 2006

ST. LOUIS - Going to the hospital is rarely fun. If you weigh over 300 pounds like Beth Henk, it can be embarrassing. "I've flipped an exam table — I sat on the end of it and it just flipped up," said Henk, whose weight peaked at 745.

When her son was born three years ago, "I had to sit in the hospital bed the whole time — the hospital's rocker wouldn't fit my butt."

Today Henk helps Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis find better ways to deal with the growing number of very obese patients, an issue for many U.S. hospitals. Barnes-Jewish is replacing beds and wheelchairs with bigger models, widening doorways, buying larger CT scan machines, even replacing slippers and gowns.

Last year, patient care director Colleen Becker decided to check the numbers. She looked at a daily hospital census — about one-third of the 900 patients weighed 350 pounds or more.

Startled, Becker checked another date, then another. The numbers were consistent. On some days, half the patients were obese. Some weighed 500 pounds or more.

"We ran the data again to make sure we weren't hallucinating," Becker said. "We weren't. So we had to somehow figure out the appropriate supplies, equipment, training and care for the patients we're dealing with."

The answer was a "bariatric care team," which Henk serves on, to address the challenges posed by obese patients. Those challenges are many.

Hospitals around the nation are working with equipment suppliers to accommodate larger patients, said Elizabeth Lietz, a spokeswoman for the American Hospital Association. And it's not just for the patients.

Help and hoists for health care workers
ATF Healthcare, a union representing 70,000 nurses and other workers at hospitals in 18 states, last week called for new laws forcing hospitals to buy equipment such as portable hoists to prevent worker injuries.

A union-commissioned survey of more than 900 nurses and X-ray technicians found the majority have chronic pain or have suffered injuries from lifting and moving patients.

At Barnes-Jewish, lift machines help some patients get in and out of bed. Chairs have been made stronger and wider. Lights have been added at floor level because the bodies of extremely obese people can cast a shadow that makes it hard to see the floor.

MORE FROM MORE HEALTH NEWS

More Health News Section Front

Body Odd: Surviving a hole in the head   Oxygen may relieve migraines, headaches   Protecting the brain from spiral of damage Scientists find key brain circuits for attention Safer, easier blood thinners in late-stage testing Ravers lose vision at laser light show Docs pull screws, nails from metal-eating man USDA to name retailers during meat recalls Popular domestic caviar raises health concerns Teen with upside-down feet takes first steps More Health News Section Front   Add More Health News headlines to your news reader: