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Hospital workers hear up to 1,000 alarm noises per shift, and that sensory overload is costing hundreds of lives. New research suggests there's a fix that could make a significant difference – while also making key equipment far less annoying.
Anyone who’s been to a hospital, either as a patient or a visitor, knows how annoying incessant beeping alarms can be. Regardless of which area of the hospital you’re in, it’s difficult to escape the noise. I know. As a former ICU nurse, I've experienced the relentless blaring of alarms from patient monitors, IV pumps, ventilators, and dialysis machines first-hand. And, in accordance with Murphy's law, they tend to all go off at the same time.
While they convey important information about patient safety, healthcare professionals can be exposed to up to 1,000 alarms each shift. However, a study found that only 15% of all alarms in the critical care unit environment were clinically relevant. The high number of false alarms can lead to ‘alarm fatigue’, desensitization caused by sensory overload that can lead to missed alarms. The US FDA reported 566 alarm-related deaths between 2005 and 2010.
The importance of clinical alarms to health care led to the introduction of global standards to ensure consistency between manufacturers. Consequently, many alarms now sound the same in terms of timbre (the character or quality of a sound), frequency and tone. In a new study, researchers experimented with different musical sounds to see how hospital alarms could be improved.
newatlas.com
Anyone who’s been to a hospital, either as a patient or a visitor, knows how annoying incessant beeping alarms can be. Regardless of which area of the hospital you’re in, it’s difficult to escape the noise. I know. As a former ICU nurse, I've experienced the relentless blaring of alarms from patient monitors, IV pumps, ventilators, and dialysis machines first-hand. And, in accordance with Murphy's law, they tend to all go off at the same time.
While they convey important information about patient safety, healthcare professionals can be exposed to up to 1,000 alarms each shift. However, a study found that only 15% of all alarms in the critical care unit environment were clinically relevant. The high number of false alarms can lead to ‘alarm fatigue’, desensitization caused by sensory overload that can lead to missed alarms. The US FDA reported 566 alarm-related deaths between 2005 and 2010.
The importance of clinical alarms to health care led to the introduction of global standards to ensure consistency between manufacturers. Consequently, many alarms now sound the same in terms of timbre (the character or quality of a sound), frequency and tone. In a new study, researchers experimented with different musical sounds to see how hospital alarms could be improved.
Annoying hospital beeps are causing hundreds of deaths a year
Hospital workers hear up to 1,000 alarm noises per shift, and that sensory overload is costing hundreds of lives. New research suggests there's a fix that could make a significant difference – while also making key equipment far less annoying.
newatlas.com
