Scientists say nurses like Sunny Vespico are prime examples of what nursing schools and hospitals are doing wrong: They keep teaching nursing employees how to lift and move patients in ways that could inadvertently result in career-ending back injuries. Vespico, a registered nurse, was working the night shift in the intensive care unit at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia on March 31, 2012. At roughly 12:30 a.m., a large patient was having trouble breathing, so Vespico and a nursing assistant moved her to a special air bed designed for patients with respiratory problems. "Immediately I felt a pop in my back and pain down my leg," Vespico says. "As a nurse, and understanding the mechanics of the body, I knew that there was something very wrong." An MRI confirmed it: She had herniated one of her discs. And so began a saga of excruciating pain and months off from work. "I am 36 years old," Vespico says. "I've had three surgeries over the last two years. And only now, after the
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