Clinical
Educator
Leadership & Management
Risk Management
Show Me the EVIDENCE: OR Noise Is A Health and Safety Risk to Staff and Patients #1078 (0.50 CH)
Elizabeth Card, MSN, RN, FNP-BC
Research Nurse Practitioner
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Nashville, TN
Glendyle Levinskas, BSN, RN, CNOR
OR Staff Nurse
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Nashville, Tennessee
Alarm fatigue, white noise, music, and conversation are all distractions that have been linked to unsafe patient conditions. In a setting where the health care team members are performing high risk, complex tasks that require situational awareness and effective communication, noise is well recognized as contributor to adverse events.