Abstract
Position changing is recommended to prevent the development of pressure sores in animals. Most veterinary nurses working in veterinary hospitals are women, and they often face difficulties in terms of strength in the arms, and running the risk of developing back pain when performing position changes in animals, especially in large dogs. In human nursing, the use of assistance gloves and other aids reduce the burden on nurses. Therefore, we examined whether assistance gloves may also be useful for changing positions of animals. Veterinary nurses with at least 5 years of work experience and veterinary nursing students who had attended lectures and practical training on changing positions participated in the experiment. Position changes were performed in sedated dogs with and without assistance gloves. The time required to change position and evaluations of performance with and without gloves were assessed. The results showed that although the presence of the assistance gloves made it easier to slide your hands under the animal, it was easier to perform position changing without the gloves. It was suggested that the gloves could be used for the purpose of relieving pressure on the contact surface between the animal and the mat, although further improvisations may be needed in order to utilize the glove in the future.
