Presentation
Stop saying alarm fatigue! You’re harming patients!
DescriptionHealthcare is a complex system in which clinicians rely on technology to support patient care. Alarm systems play a major role in alerting staff when physiological or system parameters cross preset thresholds. However, for over a decade, it's been known that clinicians face high rates of false alarms and must integrate information from multiple sources when treating patients. This has led to coping strategies that may cause critical alarms to be missed, with serious consequences for patients.
The term Alarm Fatigue has become popular to describe this issue, especially in patient safety circles. However, the term is misleading. It serves as a catch-all phrase for a range of alarm-related problems and often implies that the issue lies primarily with clinician behavior. As a result, many alarm management initiatives have focused on awareness, regulation and training, rather than addressing underlying system flaws.
This framing has diverted attention from more effective strategies grounded in systems approach. Decades of research from industries like aviation and nuclear power offer proven design and sociotechnical methods to improve alarm usability and reduce harm. To make meaningful progress, healthcare must move beyond vague terminology and embrace system-level strategies for alarm design and management.
The term Alarm Fatigue has become popular to describe this issue, especially in patient safety circles. However, the term is misleading. It serves as a catch-all phrase for a range of alarm-related problems and often implies that the issue lies primarily with clinician behavior. As a result, many alarm management initiatives have focused on awareness, regulation and training, rather than addressing underlying system flaws.
This framing has diverted attention from more effective strategies grounded in systems approach. Decades of research from industries like aviation and nuclear power offer proven design and sociotechnical methods to improve alarm usability and reduce harm. To make meaningful progress, healthcare must move beyond vague terminology and embrace system-level strategies for alarm design and management.
Event Type
Discussion Panel
Industry/Practitioner Content
TimeTuesday, October 14th1:30pm - 2:30pm CDT
LocationGrand C/D North
Health Care