Biomaterial Database

Fewer but better auditory alarms will improve patient safety. 2005

J Edworthy, and E Hellier

School of Psychology, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, Devon PL4 8AA, UK. jedworthy@plymouth.ac.uk

Auditory warnings and alarms are used throughout the medical environment but often fall short of ideal. In some instances they can be a hindrance rather than a help to medical practice. The main reasons why alarms are less than ideal are: (1) they are used too often and people's hearing as the primary warning sense is over-used; (2) false alarm rates are often exceedingly high because trigger points are inappropriately set; and (3) their design is often poor. However, enough is now known about auditory warning design and implementation to overcome many of the traditional problems associated with them. A new draft international standard incorporates many of these measures, and increasing pressure from safety organisations such as the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organisations in the USA and the National Patient Safety in the UK can help to improve the way that auditory warnings are used in medical care by implementing what is known from research into practice.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007362	Intensive Care Units	Hospital units providing continuous surveillance and care to acutely ill patients.	ICU Intensive Care Units,Intensive Care Unit,Unit, Intensive Care
D008991	Monitoring, Physiologic	The continuous measurement of physiological processes, blood pressure, heart rate, renal output, reflexes, respiration, etc., in a patient or experimental animal; includes pharmacologic monitoring, the measurement of administered drugs or their metabolites in the blood, tissues, or urine.	Patient Monitoring,Monitoring, Physiological,Physiologic Monitoring,Monitoring, Patient,Physiological Monitoring
D009623	Noise, Occupational	Noise present in occupational, industrial, and factory situations.	Occupational Noise,Noises, Occupational,Occupational Noises
D009741	Nursing Staff, Hospital	Personnel who provide nursing service to patients in a hospital.	Hospital Nursing Staff,Hospital Nursing Staffs,Nursing Staffs, Hospital,Staff, Hospital Nursing,Staffs, Hospital Nursing
D003221	Confusion	A mental state characterized by bewilderment, emotional disturbance, lack of clear thinking, and perceptual disorientation.	Confusional State,Bewilderment,Confusion, Post-Ictal,Confusion, Reactive,Disorientation,Confusion, Post Ictal,Confusional States,Post-Ictal Confusion,Reactive Confusion,State, Confusional,States, Confusional
D004582	Electronics, Medical	The research and development of ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES for such medical applications as diagnosis, therapy, research, anesthesia control, cardiac control, and surgery. (From McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 6th ed)	Medical Electronics
D004630	Emergencies	Situations or conditions requiring immediate intervention to avoid serious adverse results.	Emergency
D004868	Equipment Failure	Failure of equipment to perform to standard. The failure may be due to defects or improper use.	Defects, Equipment,Device Failure,Failure, Equipment,Malfunction, Equipment,Medical Device Failure,Misuse, Equipment,Device Failure, Medical,Device Failures, Medical,Failure, Medical Device,Failures, Medical Device,Defect, Equipment,Device Failures,Equipment Defect,Equipment Defects,Equipment Failures,Equipment Malfunction,Equipment Malfunctions,Equipment Misuse,Equipment Misuses,Failure, Device,Failures, Device,Failures, Equipment,Malfunctions, Equipment,Misuses, Equipment
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D006804	Ergonomics	The science of designing, building or equipping mechanical devices or artificial environments to the anthropometric, physiological, or psychological requirements of the people who will use them.	Engineering Psychology,Human Engineering,Cognitive Ergonomics,Ergonomic Assessment,Human Factors Engineering,Human Factors and Ergonomics,Organizational Ergonomics,Physical Ergonomics,Psychology, Engineering,Visual Ergonomics,Cognitive Ergonomic,Ergonomic,Ergonomic Assessments,Ergonomic, Cognitive,Ergonomic, Organizational,Ergonomic, Physical,Ergonomic, Visual,Ergonomics, Cognitive,Ergonomics, Organizational,Ergonomics, Physical,Ergonomics, Visual,Human Factors Engineerings,Organizational Ergonomic,Physical Ergonomic,Visual Ergonomic