Repositioning in bed is where most carer injuries and most skin tears start. Slide gloves are worn on the hands and give the carer a low-friction surface to work with, so a hand can slide under and along a client without dragging on skin or clothing. Shear comes down for the client, and the effort comes down for the carer.
The outer surface is a silicone coating that slips. The inside is non-slip, so the glove stays put on the hand while force is applied. They wash in the machine and live in a drawer at the bedside rather than taking up storage space.
Carers use them to reposition someone already lying on a slide sheet, to ease sleeves and trouser legs over limbs when dressing, and to settle a client onto a cushion where a therapist needs to control a bony prominence without pulling the skin. They also pair well with a hoist, smoothing the work of placing a sling. What they will not do is take a client’s weight: they assist a move, they do not replace a slide sheet or a hoist.
