1. Importance of Regular and Accurate Weights

2. Why Weigh Patients? For accurate calculation of medication dose
To provide information regarding nutritional status
To assess total fluid balance
To support diagnostic tests
To evaluate a patient’s response to medical treatment (e.g. diuretic therapy)

3. Who uses weights?
Pharmacists: prescribe medication based on body weight
Occupational therapists: need weights for ordering assistive devices
Physiotherapists: assessment for mobility devices
Physicians: part of their clinical assessment and overall status
Social Workers: Discharge documentation
Dietitians: To provide accurate diagnosis, treatment and monitoring for risk of malnutrition

4. Tips for Implementation
Make sure equipment is available, easy to access and working properly
Consult staff regarding what day is best and the best way to start, so it becomes part of the routine; continue to consult the team throughout the process
Have an easy location for weight to be recorded (i.e. a bright coloured paper with room numbers)
Choose 1 day/week as a “weigh day” where all patients on the unit are weighed
Don’t just weigh the mobile patients; remove barriers to this by having appropriate equipment

5. Tips for Implementation
Put up reminders about weigh day or when to use specific scales (i.e. Just Press “Zero” posters as reminders to use bed scales)
Work as a team (i.e. if a PT is assisting a patient to walk, weigh the patient while they are already out of bed)
Communicate with the team about how they are doing
Continue to audit after implementation and feed back results

6. Acknowledgements These slides were created and approved by:
Heather Keller
Celia Laur
Bridget Davidson
The More-2-Eat Education Group*
* Includes input from the UK Need for Nutrition Education/Innovation Programme (NNEdPro) Group
The More-2-Eat study was funded by Canadian Frailty Network (known previously as Technology Evaluation in the Elderly Network, TVN), supported by Government of Canada through Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) Program