Making Information Technology a Team Player in Safety: The Case of Infusion Devices
Abstract
Objective: To fulfill the promise of information technology in health care, automation must be made into a "team player." Methods: Observational research in both the laboratory and field focused on how subjects program infusion devices. These programming activities were examined in detail for a set of tasks, using experienced clinicians as subjects. Observations were validated using U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) incident reports and field studies. Results: The laboratory study shows that difficulties arise from poor coordination between the operator and the device as a result of device complexity. These findings are consistent with reports of device programming problems in the FDA's Manufacturer and User facility Device Experience (MAUDE) database. Conclusions: Problems with infusion devices are the result of difficulties that operators have with complex devices and their programming. Opportunities to improve device reliability lie primarily in improving the interface design, such as by making the device's state evident and improving menu structure navigation.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 01, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA434040
Entities
People
- Christopher Nemeth
- Mark Nunnally
- Michael O’connor
- P. A. Klock
- Richard Cook
Organizations
- United States Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality