SELF/Perioperative Nursing/Patient Transfer/Psychomotor Skills Practice Assessment

Assessment Rubric: Patient Transfer – Perioperative Nursing (ECSACONM)

Overview

This page provides a psychomotor assessment rubric for safe patient transfer onto the operating table, developed for perioperative nursing training under ECSACONM (East, Central and Southern Africa College of Nursing). It accompanies the corresponding psychomotor skills practice worksheet and is used to assess learner performance across each step.

Each step is assessed by one of two methods. Articulated steps are scored as either "Not done" (clinically unacceptable / not performed) or "Done" (excellent), with no intermediate levels. Observed steps are scored on a five-point scale, with performance anchors defined at level 1 (clinically unacceptable / not performed), level 3 (clinically acceptable / performed), and level 5 (excellent); levels 2 and 4 represent performance between the defined anchors. The Assistant column records the task expected of the assisting learner where applicable.

Assessment Rubric

#	Step Name	Assistant	Assessment Method	1 – Clinically Unacceptable / Not Performed	3 – Clinically Acceptable / Performed	5 – Excellent
1	Gather supplies	-	Articulated	Not done		Done
2	Assess patient readiness for transfer	-	Articulated	Not done		Done
3	Select transfer method and team roles	-	Articulated	Not done		Done
4	Prepare transfer environment	-	Articulated	Not done		Done
5	Prepare patient and protect attachments	Helps expose only what is needed and gathers lines/drains	Observed	Lines, drains, limbs, or equipment are left unsecured, creating significant risk of injury or dislodgement.	Patients and attachments are prepared appropriately with minor inefficiencies but no safety compromise.	All lines, drains, catheters, monitoring devices, and limbs are systematically protected proactively and efficiently with excellent patient preparation.
6	Position transfer aid under patient	Assists with log roll or gentle turn as directed	Observed	Transfer aid poorly positioned, causing unsafe patient handling, excessive shearing, or loss of alignment.	Transfer aid positioned correctly with acceptable technique and patient safety maintained.	Transfer aid positioned smoothly, efficiently, and atraumatically with excellent alignment and minimal patient disturbance.
7	Align patient before movement	Supports head, shoulders, hips, or legs as assigned	Observed	Patient significantly misaligned, limbs unsupported, or body positioned unsafely before transfer.	Patient aligned appropriately with acceptable support of body and limbs.	Excellent anatomical alignment maintained with full support of head, limbs, and body position.
8	Transfer patient on command	Moves simultaneously with team on leader's count	Observed	Poor coordination, unsafe movement, excessive shearing, loss of control, or risk of fall.	Transfer completed safely with coordinated movement and acceptable teamwork.	Smooth, controlled, well-coordinated transfer with excellent communication and patient protection throughout.
9	Remove transfer aid if appropriate	Assists with gentle roll or lift to remove aid	Observed	Removes aid unsafely, causing patient movement, skin injury, or loss of positioning.	Removes transfer aid safely with minimal disturbance to patient position.	Transfer aid removed smoothly and efficiently while maintaining excellent patient alignment and comfort.
10	Verify final patient position and comfort	Checks assigned side of patient and attached devices	Observed	Fails to identify poor positioning, pressure risks, or patient discomfort.	Confirms positioning, alignment, and comfort adequately with no major omissions.	Performs comprehensive positioning assessment and optimizes comfort, alignment, and pressure protection.
11	Secure patient and equipment	-	Observed	Safety devices, brakes, lines, or equipment remain unsecured creating patient risk.	Patient and equipment secured appropriately with acceptable safety checks.	Thorough safety verification completed with all equipment secured and the patient fully protected.
12	Reassess patient after transfer	-	Articulated	Not done		Done
13	Communicate transfer completion and concerns	-	Articulated	Not done		Done

References

Page data
Keywords	surgery, health
SDG	SDG03 Good health and well-being
Authors	Ian-laurel
License	CC-BY-SA-4.0
Organizations	SELF, ECSACONM
Language	English (en)
Related	0 subpages, 1 pages link here
Views	2 page views (analytics)
Created	July 29, 2026 by Ian-laurel-1
Last edit	July 29, 2026 by StandardWikitext bot
Cite as	Ian-laurel-1 (2026). "SELF/Perioperative Nursing/Patient Transfer/Psychomotor Skills Practice Assessment". Appropedia. Retrieved July 30, 2026.
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