| Course | NU140 Nursing Fundamentals |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 7 |
| Paper type | Skills documentation |
| Length | About 860 words, 6 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | BSN (prelicensure) |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for NU140 Unit 7
Sling, Spreader Bar and Two Staff: Skills Documentation of a Full-Body Mechanical Lift From Bed to Chair for a Composite 64-Year-Old Woman With Paraplegia, Followed by a Skin Inspection and Pressure Injury Risk Score
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
NU140: Nursing Fundamentals
Unit 7 Skills Documentation
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The patient is composite; the steps follow typical safe patient handling practice, and the manufacturer's instructions for the specific lift govern.
Situation
[Mrs. N.], a composite 64-year-old with paraplegia from a spinal cord injury twenty years ago, is admitted with a urinary tract infection. She cannot bear weight, and she weighs [104] kg. She usually transfers at home with a mechanical lift and her husband's help. She wants to sit in a chair for lunch. Manual lifting of a patient this size by staff carries a high risk of back injury to the caregivers and of falls or skin tears for the patient; safety research has recommended a limit of about [35] pounds for a manual patient lift under ideal conditions, well below her weight (Waters, 2007).
Equipment
A full-body mechanical lift rated for her weight; a full-body sling in the size recommended for her, checked for fraying and correct labels; a chair with a pressure-redistributing cushion; a second staff member.
Part One: The Lift
1. Explain the procedure to Mrs. N. and ask how she prefers it done at home. Reason: she is the expert on her own transfers, and knowing the steps reduces fear.
2. Check the lift's weight limit, battery and brakes, and the sling's size and condition. Reason: an overloaded lift or a worn sling can fail.
3. Lock the bed brakes, raise the bed to working height and lower the head of the bed. Reason: working height protects staff backs; a flat bed makes placing the sling easier.
4. Roll her to one side, place the sling under her from shoulders to thighs with the center line along her spine, then roll her to the other side and pull the sling through. Reason: a centered sling distributes weight evenly and prevents tipping.
5. Position the lift with its legs open under the bed, lower the spreader bar and attach the sling straps, using the same color loops on each side. Reason: matching loops keep her level and balanced.
6. Raise her slowly until she clears the bed by a few centimeters, then pause and check that the straps are secure and she is comfortable. Reason: a pause at low height lets a problem be fixed before she is high in the air.
7. With one staff member guiding her legs and the other moving the lift, move her over the chair, with the chair's brakes locked. Reason: guiding prevents her legs from striking the chair or lift.
8. Lower her slowly into the chair, guiding her hips to the back of the seat. Reason: sitting well back distributes pressure over the thighs instead of the tailbone.
9. Detach the straps; remove the sling only if it is not meant to stay in place while seated. Reason: some slings are designed to stay under the patient, while others trap heat and moisture against the skin.
The pause a few centimeters above the bed is the most important step: it is the last moment to find a loose strap safely.
Part Two: Skin Inspection
While she was turned for sling placement, her skin was inspected at the sacrum, coccyx, both hips, both heels and the backs of the ears. Findings: intact skin over the hips and heels; at the sacrum, a [3] by [2] cm area of redness that did not fade when pressed with a finger. Nonblanching redness over intact skin is a stage 1 pressure injury, a sign that tissue beneath has been damaged by pressure (Edsberg et al., 2016).
Part Three: Risk Score and What It Changes
Her pressure injury risk score was [13], placing her at moderate risk, driven by loss of sensation, limited mobility and moisture from her infection. The score and the stage 1 finding change her care: seated time is limited to one hour, with weight shifts every [15] minutes, which she can do by leaning side to side; turning in bed every two hours; a pressure-redistributing mattress; moisture management; and daily inspection of the sacrum (Potter et al., 2023).
Returning to Bed
After an hour, she is returned to bed with the same lift and two staff, reversing the steps. She is positioned on her side, tilted about 30 degrees with pillows, to keep pressure off the sacrum, and her heels are floated on a pillow under her calves. Her own routine at home, shifting her weight in her wheelchair on a timer, is written into the plan so staff follow the schedule she already knows.
Documentation Entry
[Time]: Transferred bed to chair with full-body mechanical lift and two staff; patient tolerated well. Skin inspected during sling placement: stage 1 pressure injury at sacrum, 3 by 2 cm, nonblanching, intact. Risk score 13. Seated time limited to one hour with weight shifts every 15 minutes; provider and wound nurse notified.
References
Edsberg, L. E., Black, J. M., Goldberg, M., McNichol, L., Moore, L., & Sieggreen, M. (2016). Revised National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel pressure injury staging system. Journal of Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nursing, 43(6), 585-597. https://doi.org/10.1097/WON.0000000000000281
Potter, P. A., Perry, A. G., Stockert, P. A., & Hall, A. M. (2023). Fundamentals of nursing (11th ed.). Elsevier.
Waters, T. R. (2007). When is it safe to manually lift a patient? American Journal of Nursing, 107(8), 53-58. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NAJ.0000282296.18688.b1
Reading the NU 140 Unit 7 instructions
Unit 7 commonly pairs a mobility skill with skin protection, since moving a patient carries both a fall risk and a pressure or shear risk. Prompts usually want the transfer documented step by step with reasons, a skin assessment of pressure points, a risk score, how the findings change care, and a documentation entry. Three to four pages is typical. Faculty look for safe patient handling, including when manual lifting is unsafe and equipment is required, correct use of the device, and an accurate skin assessment that distinguishes harmless redness from injury. The risk score should lead to specific actions rather than being reported on its own, and the patient's own routines should be respected.
How the NU 140 Unit 7 example is put together
The record opens with Mrs. N., her weight, her home transfers and evidence on why manual lifting is unsafe for staff and patient. Equipment is listed, then nine lift steps with reasons, with the highlighted line on the low pause before moving. Skin inspection during sling placement covers six pressure points and uses the blanch test to identify a stage 1 injury at the sacrum, citing the staging system. The risk score section explains which factors raised her score and what each finding changes. A section on returning to bed adds side-lying positioning, floated heels and her home weight-shift routine, and the charting entry records the transfer, the finding and who was notified.
Reading the NU140 Unit 7 grading rubric
Skills documentation in this unit tends to earn points for safe technique, rationales, accuracy of the skin assessment, and connection between findings and care. Safe technique credit goes to correct equipment checks, staffing and step order. Rationales should explain the safety principle behind each step. Skin assessment points require correct identification and staging of any injury, with location and size recorded. The connection criterion rewards specific changes to care that follow from the risk score and findings. A factual charting entry matters too, supported by sources in APA 7, and respect for the patient's expertise about her own transfers is often noticed by graders.
Common NU140 Unit 7 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Write-ups in this unit often describe a manual pivot transfer for a patient who cannot bear weight, which is unsafe. Another common error is calling any red area a pressure injury without checking whether it blanches. Some papers report a risk score but change nothing in the plan because of it. Many forget to ask the patient how she transfers at home. Check whether equipment is required, document each lift step with its reason, inspect skin while the patient is turned, use the blanch test, stage what you find, let the score drive specific actions, and include the patient's own routines in the plan. A short, factual chart entry finishes the record.
Get an NU140 Unit 7 example written to your instructions
When a lab checklist exists for the Unit 7 skill, it shapes the whole record, so upload it along with the scenario your section posted and the rubric. Transfer steps and the skin block are matched to that checklist line by line. A first custom sample is free, delivered in 24-48h, and its patient is invented. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
More NU140 papers and BSN samples
- NU140 Unit 1: Discussion Board Post
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- NU140 Unit 3: Care Plan
- NU140 Unit 4: Safety Analysis
- NU140 Unit 5: Case Study Analysis
- NU140 Unit 6: Teaching Plan
- NU140 Unit 8: Case Study Analysis
- NU140 Unit 9: Reflection
- NU140 Unit 10: Final Care Plan
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NU140 Unit 7 questions, answered
Where can I find a free NU140 Unit 7 sample paper?
This page presents the full NU140 Unit 7 skills documentation of a mechanical lift transfer, skin inspection, risk score, return to bed and charting, with three references. Ask us to document your assigned mobility skill.
When should a mechanical lift be used instead of manual lifting?
When the patient cannot bear weight or exceeds a safe manual load. Safety research has recommended a limit of about 35 pounds for a manual patient lift, far below most adults' weight.
What is a stage 1 pressure injury?
Intact skin with redness that does not fade when pressed. Nonblanching redness signals damage to tissue beneath the surface from pressure, and it calls for changes to prevent progression.
Why pause just above the bed during a lift?
The pause lets the nurse check straps, balance and comfort while the patient is only a few centimeters up, the last safe point to fix a problem before she is moved.
How does the risk score change care in NU140 Unit 7?
Her moderate score and sacral injury limit seated time to an hour, add weight shifts every 15 minutes, require two-hourly turns and a pressure-redistributing mattress, and add daily sacral inspection.