Midas trains drivers to
push wheelchairs onto the tail lift and push them into the minibus and
reverse out, and I want query this and ask whether pulling wheelchairs onto the
tail lift and into the minibus and then pushing them out should be a preferred method, and so I thought I'd ask for people's thoughts and what other's might have in place as safe systems of work.

The reason why I am querying the guidance is because of the HSE guidance with regards to falls from vehicles. The HSE guidance with regards to falls from vehicles states ‘ At present, the most practical solutions for tail-lifts that operate below two metre height appears to be providing guard rails on both sides, but not on the rear end.  This should then be coupled with safe systems of work, such as positioning and unloading loads in such a way that keeps the operator away from the edge of the tail-lift platform.

Safe systems of work will help reduce the risk further, and will be particularly necessary where it is not reasonably practicable to fit guard-rails on all sides of the tail-lift, to ensure the operators remains within the protection of the guard rail system’.

Therefore, this would suggest that it would be safer for the driver to pull the wheelchair onto the tail lift and onto the minibus, and then turn the wheelchair in the minibus so that passengers can transfer into a fixed seat or be positioned and clamped in, and then pushed forwards out of the minibus onto the tail lift, as then within both operations the driver is stood within the protection of the guard rail system at all times. The wheelchair has its breaks on, and should it roll the small wheel at the front of the wheelchair is not going to roll off as there is the tailgate lip.

This then eliminates or reduces significantly the risk of the driver falling from height from the tail lift.

So here you have two conflicting risks. Fall from height v Manual handling, as we know in theory that pushing is better than pulling. The question is which is the more significant risk, and how would the HSE view things if someone fell off the back of a tail lift?

Lowest common denominator = the driver

Go ask the people doing the job to find what they think, at the end of the day it will be done in what they perceive to be the most efficient manner regardless of training or faceless edict.

Or better still go and pull a bariatric guest on to the tail lift and see what your back tells you about conducting the task in that manner - much easier to push with the legs than pull with the back

Edited by user 08 March 2017 21:26:40(UTC)  | Reason: FFS