A safety alert has been issued to all state and territory health departments following concerns that nursing homes, residential homes and hospitals are misusing a medical device that can inflict bed sores and welts on patients.

The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) issued the warning after an investigation into the All Day Sling, made by Arjo Australia. The sling is placed underneath patients in beds or wheelchairs and is then attached to a lifting device to move the patient. Despite its name, the sling and similar products have only been approved by the TGA to lift and transfer patients, and not for all-day use.

'Treated like a child': nursing homes admit 112,000 cases of substandard care Read more

However, the TGA was prompted to act over concerns the sling was being left underneath vulnerable patients for hours at a time between transfers, which may increase their risk of developing pressure sores and related complications such as sepsis. The sores can be extremely painful, take a long time to heal, and those with limited mobility, including elderly people in aged care, are at particular risk.

A TGA spokesman told Guardian Australia it had ordered the device’s usage instructions be updated to include warnings about pressure sores. It also issued a safety alert to all state and territory health departments, which manage nursing homes and hospitals.

“Arjo Australia Pty Ltd has been reminded of its obligations under the advertising code, including that advertising material must align with the instructions for use for the device,” the spokesman said.

Guardian Australia has contacted Arjo for comment.

Ron van Leer complained about the sling after he realised it was being kept under his 92-year-old mother for four to eight hours at a time.

Family-owned aged care companies criticised for 'aggressive tax minimisation' Read more

“Mum has been taken to the hospital a few times and they check her skin while she’s there, and once they said there was a red area on her lower back, and that is a precursor to a pressure sore,” he said.

“The anxiety I have because of this is enormous because Mum had two pressure sores on her left foot previously and I’ve seen how long those things take to heal – that’s without those sores being under constant pressure pushed against material and plastic clips on the sling. Mum has dementia and is not mobile. I have seen the sling under my mum with the hard plastic clips they use to connect to the lifting machine underneath her legs.”

Van Leer said marketing the sling “all day” could be misleading and that it might be widely used on vulnerable patients who had no one to advocate for them. Despite raising concerns with the nursing home, Van Leer said the sling was still being kept under his mother for prolonged periods and that the head supports that slip into the sling to support the patient’s head during lifting were often not used.

He has lodged a formal complaint to the TGA. He has also made a submission to the aged care royal commission.

“It’s my mum. I can’t bear to see her hurt or in pain because of mistreatment,” he said. “I’m her son and its my turn to look after her.”

Do you know more? melissa.davey@theguardian.com