On 16 September 2026, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued a National Patient Safety Alert (NatPSA/2026/005/MHRA) on patient hoists and slings. It applies to every type of hoist and sling, in every care setting, and it’s one of the clearest messages the sector has had on hoist and sling safety in years.
The reason is sobering. Between 2015 and 2025, 22 people died after falling from a hoist or sling. That’s roughly two deaths a year, and behind every one is a family, a care team and an event that could almost certainly have been prevented.
What went wrong
The MHRA found the same problems coming up again and again: hoists and slings that weren’t compatible with each other, damaged clips and loops, pre-use checks that were skipped or rushed, equipment overdue for its examination, the wrong sling for the person, and staff who hadn’t been trained on the specific equipment they were using.
None of these are exotic. They’re the everyday things that slip when a shift is busy.
What the alert asks you to do
Providers have 12 months to complete the actions, but the alert is clear that immediate safety concerns shouldn’t wait. In short:
- Check before every use. Inspect the hoist, sling, loops, clips and attachment points every single time.
- Pause and check. When the sling goes taut and starts to take the person’s weight, stop. Check every attachment again before lifting fully.
- Confirm compatibility. Only use hoist and sling combinations that are confirmed as compatible, including any third-party slings.
- Keep an equipment register. Record every hoist and sling, with its servicing and examination history.
- Stay in date with LOLER. Hoists used for lifting people need a thorough examination by a competent person at least every six months.
- Take faulty kit out of use. If anything is missing, worn or damaged, mark it “Do Not Use” and report it straight away.
- Train your staff properly. Staff need equipment-specific training and to be assessed as competent, with records kept up to date.
Why training is key to hoist and sling safety
Most of those actions come down to one thing: people who know what they’re looking at. A pre-use check is only as good as the person doing it. Spotting a frayed loop, knowing which sling suits which person, and having the confidence to stop and say “this isn’t safe” all come from proper, hands-on practice, not from a video or a tick-box form.
That’s why every one of our moving and handling sessions covers pre-use checks, sling selection, compatibility and the pause-and-check step in practice, using real equipment. Our training kit is LOLER and PUWER compliant and PAT tested, so your team learns on equipment that meets the same standards the alert expects on the floor.
If you don’t have your own training equipment, we can bring it. Take a look at our Equipment page, or see How It Works for what a session involves.
Where to start
It’s also worth checking your equipment register against the alert, making sure every hoist has an in-date LOLER examination, and confirming each person’s moving and handling plan names the right sling type and size. Small checks like these are the foundation of good hoist and sling safety.
If you’re working through the alert now, a good first step is simply to check when your team last had practical moving and handling training, and whether it covered the equipment they actually use today.
If it’s time for a refresher, get in touch, and we’ll help you plan training around your rota, at your premises.
Source: MHRA National Patient Safety Alert NatPSA/2026/005/MHRA, 16 September 2026.
