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Last Updated on 25/09/2026 by Sarah Sarsby
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has issued a National Patient Safety Alert to reduce the risk of death and serious harm from falls involving patient hoists and slings.
Published on 16 September 2026, the alert requires action from everyone responsible for using, purchasing, or maintaining patient hoists within acute and community healthcare organisations, care homes, nursing homes, and services supporting people in their own homes, alongside their equipment providers.
This is a safety critical and complex alert. Implementation should be coordinated by an executive leader or an equivalent senior accountable person, such as a registered manager or responsible individual, in organisations without executive boards.
The MHRA received 22 reports of incidents with a fatal outcome during patient transfers between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2025. Reporting is likely to underrepresent the scale of harm.
These incidents are not linked to any single manufacturer or model and have been reported across hospitals, care homes, and people’s own homes.
Common causes of fatal and serious patient falls from hoists include detachment at load-bearing connections, incompatible equipment, incorrect sling selection or attachment, inadequate checks and maintenance, insufficient training, and failure to follow manufacturers’ instructions.
Dr Alison Cave, MHRA Chief Safety Officer, said: “Patient hoists are vital devices that support safe and dignified care, but when they are used incorrectly or not properly maintained, the consequences can be devastating.
“Ensuring patients are safe during transfers and repositioning is our top priority.
“Our alert sets out clear actions to help prevent avoidable harm. We are urging healthcare providers, carers and anyone using a hoist to follow this guidance carefully and ensure equipment is safe before every use.”
The alert requires the following five actions to be completed by 16 September 2027. Key requirements for implementing each action are included below.
Complete standardised checks for all hoists and slings, aligned with manufacturers’ instructions for use (IFU). Identify missing components, worn or damaged carabiners and retaining features, damaged or incorrectly seated sling loops, and other deterioration.
Pause after initial load take-up, when the sling is taut and the patient’s weight is partially supported, but before fully lifting. Confirm all attachments are secure, particularly loop-type attachments. Immediately remove equipment with missing, worn, damaged, or incorrectly assembled components from service, mark it ‘DO NOT USE’, and report it locally.
Review and document all hoist and sling combinations against manufacturers’ IFU. In exceptional circumstances where compatibility cannot be confirmed, an appropriately qualified person must verify it through a documented risk assessment supported by technical evidence, including for third-party slings. Maintain a register of approved combinations accessible to relevant staff.
Document patient-specific assessments confirming suitability. Repeat these when equipment combinations or patients’ conditions change, including weight, posture, muscle tone, cognition, pain, sitting balance, participation in transfers, or tolerance of hoisting. Accessories, including weighing scales, must be compatible and fitted according to the IFU.
Record all hoists and slings, including community equipment, in device management systems. Include maintenance, examination under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER), and replacement plans.
Records should include the manufacturer, make, model, lot number, location, last service date, end-of-service-life date, last LOLER examination date, and next servicing and examination due dates.
Further information is available in the MHRA’s ‘Managing Medical Devices’ and ‘Devices in practice: Checklists for Using Medical Devices’ guidance.
Maintain, service, and examine hoists under LOLER and manufacturers’ IFU, keeping records current. The alert specifies thorough examination by a competent person at intervals not exceeding six months.
Remove hoists with overdue examinations or unresolved defects from service. Check slings regularly according to manufacturers’ instructions. Checks before use do not replace maintenance programmes or statutory examinations. Monitor outsourced maintenance and servicing schedules. The accompanying guidance also requires functional checks after servicing or repairs before hoists or slings return to use.
Provide role-appropriate training with regular updates and maintained records. Cover manufacturers’ IFU, checks before use, compatibility, fitting and attachment, unsafe equipment, and when to stop, escalate, and report concerns.
Tailor training to the hoists, slings, patient groups, and care settings involved. Include patients, families, and carers where applicable. Cover reporting incidents and near misses through the MHRA Yellow Card scheme and local routes, plus safe handling and transportation of hoists, particularly in multistorey settings.
BHTA members should consult the full alert and supporting guidance, which includes incident examples and stresses that compatibility cannot be assumed because a sling physically fits.
