PUBLISHER: The Business Research Company | PRODUCT CODE: 1946723
PUBLISHER: The Business Research Company | PRODUCT CODE: 1946723
Lateral patient transfer involves the movement of patients from one surface to another, such as transferring them from a bed to a stretcher or from a wheelchair to a bed. This practice is common in various medical settings and is crucial for ensuring safe patient management. The products and sheets used in lateral patient transfer aid in facilitating safe transfers and repositioning of patients.
The primary types of products utilized in patient lateral transfer include air-assisted lateral transfer mattresses, sliding sheets, and related accessories. An air-assisted lateral transfer mattress is a type of medical device specifically designed to assist caregivers in transferring patients. These mattresses can be for single-patient use or reusable, and they find application in various healthcare settings, including hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, and other medical facilities.
Tariffs are impacting the patient lateral transfer market by increasing import and material costs for polymers, textiles, inflatable components, and mechanical parts used in air-assisted mattresses, sliding sheets, transfer straps, and lifting slings, which has raised manufacturing and procurement expenses across reusable and single-patient-use product segments. The effects are more visible in North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific regions that rely on cross-border sourcing and contract manufacturing for powered and manual transfer systems used in hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers. These higher landed costs have led to pricing pressure and delayed bulk purchasing in cost-sensitive facilities; however, tariffs are also encouraging localized assembly, regional supplier development, and near-shoring initiatives, producing selective positive outcomes for domestic producers.
The patient lateral transfer market research report is one of a series of new reports from The Business Research Company that provides patient lateral transfer market statistics, including patient lateral transfer industry global market size, regional shares, competitors with a patient lateral transfer market share, detailed patient lateral transfer market segments, market trends and opportunities, and any further data you may need to thrive in the patient lateral transfer industry. This patient lateral transfer market research report delivers a complete perspective of everything you need, with an in-depth analysis of the current and future scenario of the industry.
The patient lateral transfer market size has grown strongly in recent years. It will grow from $4.88 billion in 2025 to $5.32 billion in 2026 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.1%. The growth in the historic period can be attributed to rising hospitalization and surgical admission volumes, increasing awareness of patient handling safety protocols, early introduction of sliding sheets and manual transfer aids, growing emphasis on reducing caregiver injuries in hospital settings, expansion of lateral transfer usage in intensive care and emergency departments.
The patient lateral transfer market size is expected to see strong growth in the next few years. It will grow to $7.58 billion in 2030 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.2%. The growth in the forecast period can be attributed to aging patient population requiring frequent transfers, rising demand for air-assisted powered transfer mattresses, increasing adoption of single patient use and disposable transfer products, growing lateral transfer utilization in ambulatory surgical centers, expanding implementation of safe patient handling programs across healthcare facilities. Major trends in the forecast period include rising adoption of air-assisted lateral transfer mattresses in acute and critical care units, increasing utilization of sliding sheets and transfer aids for safe patient repositioning, growing demand for single-patient-use transfer products to reduce cross-contamination, expansion of lateral transfer solutions in ambulatory surgical and day-care settings, increasing focus on caregiver safety and musculoskeletal injury prevention during transfers.
The rising hospitalization rate is expected to drive the growth of the patient lateral transfer market in the coming years. Hospitalization refers to the admission of a patient to a hospital for medical care, treatment, or surgical procedures that require at least an overnight stay under professional supervision. The increasing hospitalization rate reflects the growing number of individuals being admitted to hospitals for medical treatment. Lateral transfer is utilized in hospital settings to reposition patients, facilitate care delivery, and enable assessment of the patient's condition. For example, in February 2024, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information, a Canada-based healthcare organization, Canada recorded 2.96 million acute inpatient hospitalizations in 2022-2023, an increase from 2.88 million hospitalizations in 2022. Therefore, the rising hospitalization rate is driving the growth of the patient lateral transfer market.
Major companies operating in the patient lateral transfer market are emphasizing technological advancements, such as lift-free, air-assisted patient positioning devices, to improve patient movement, repositioning efficiency, and caregiver safety while minimizing physical effort. Lift-free, air-assisted patient positioning devices utilize air flow channels, low-friction materials, and optimized pad configurations to facilitate smooth lateral transfers, support demanding procedural positions such as Trendelenburg and lithotomy, and accommodate patients with high body mass index or limited mobility. For instance, in February 2024, Xodus Medical, a US-based medical device company, introduced two new configurations of its Pink Pad Air-Assist system. The Pink Pad Air-Assist Trendelenburg includes an additional distal air channel to enhance lifting and transfer of heavier patients, while the Pink Pad Air-Assist EXT + Trendelenburg extends up to 72 inches with redesigned air channels and pad strips, enabling safer, more adaptable, and efficient patient repositioning across diverse clinical settings.
In August 2023, Pelstar LLC, a US-based provider of medical supplies for both commercial and personal use, acquired Bridge Healthcare USA for an undisclosed amount. This strategic move aims to enhance Pelstar's portfolio of Safe Patient Handling products, which focuses on reducing injuries among healthcare workers during patient transfers. Bridge Healthcare USA is a US-based company that specializes in providing patient lateral transfer solutions.
Major companies operating in the patient lateral transfer market are Stryker Corporation, Medline Industries Inc., Scan Medical Co Inc., Hill-Rom Holdings Inc., Wideblue Ltd., Arjo AB, Etac AB, Handicare Group AB, AliMed Inc., Prism Medical Inc., EZ Way Inc., HoverTech International, Blue Chip Medical Products Inc., Airpal Inc., McAuley Medical Inc., Samarit Medical AG, Patient Positioning Systems LLC, David Scott Company, Haines Medical Australia, WY East Medical Company, GBUK Ltd.
North America was the largest region in the patient lateral transfer market in 2025. The regions covered in the patient lateral transfer market report are Asia-Pacific, South East Asia, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Middle East, Africa.
The countries covered in the patient lateral transfer market report are Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Taiwan, Russia, South Korea, UK, USA, Canada, Italy, Spain
The patient lateral transfer market consists of revenues earned by entities by providing services such as patient care assessment, patient management. The market value includes the value of related goods sold by the service provider or included within the service offering. The patient lateral transfer market also includes sales of transfer boards, transfer slings, ceiling lifts and rolling transfer boards that are used in patient lateral transfer services. Values in this market are 'factory gate' values, that is the value of goods sold by the manufacturers or creators of the goods, whether to other entities (including downstream manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers) or directly to end customers. The value of goods in this market includes related services sold by the creators of the goods.
The market value is defined as the revenues that enterprises gain from the sale of goods and/or services within the specified market and geography through sales, grants, or donations in terms of the currency (in USD unless otherwise specified).
The revenues for a specified geography are consumption values that are revenues generated by organizations in the specified geography within the market, irrespective of where they are produced. It does not include revenues from resales along the supply chain, either further along the supply chain or as part of other products.
Patient Lateral Transfer Market Global Report 2026 from The Business Research Company provides strategists, marketers and senior management with the critical information they need to assess the market.
This report focuses patient lateral transfer market which is experiencing strong growth. The report gives a guide to the trends which will be shaping the market over the next ten years and beyond.
Where is the largest and fastest growing market for patient lateral transfer ? How does the market relate to the overall economy, demography and other similar markets? What forces will shape the market going forward, including technological disruption, regulatory shifts, and changing consumer preferences? The patient lateral transfer market global report from the Business Research Company answers all these questions and many more.
The report covers market characteristics, size and growth, segmentation, regional and country breakdowns, total addressable market (TAM), market attractiveness score (MAS), competitive landscape, market shares, company scoring matrix, trends and strategies for this market. It traces the market's historic and forecast market growth by geography.
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