PROPER PATIENT TRANSPORT AND POSITIONING TECHNIQUES are essential to both the safety of your patients and the physical well-being of your staff. Maneuvering patients can be dangerous; patients are at risk of falling or being dropped, while staff put their backs on the line every time they move a patient. Still, there are almost no laws, standards or regulations to mandate the precise amount of lifting that it's safe to perform. That doesn't mean you should avoid taking precautions to protect your patients and staff.