Medical Alarm Fatigue

Alarms are an important part of clinical care as it serves as a warning to a possible medical error or an impending medical emergency. But when they occur frequently, most of which end up being "false-alarms," they become worse than useless and actually contributes  to an unsafe patient environment because a life-threatening event may be missed due to such sensory overload. In one fascinating research article performed in an intensive care unit (ICU) where the sickest of the sick…

4/25/2015 0

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Device that Allows Intubated Patients to Talk

Image by Calleamanecer in Wikipedia There is nothing worse than to be very sick. It's even worse if you are intubated in the ICU (intensive care unit) being poked and prodded constantly. Traditionally, such sick intubated patients (if alert) will communicate by writing on a clipboard which is often frustrating to not just the patient, but also family members and healthcare professionals trying to care for the patient. However, NEJM reported on the use of an electrolarynx to allow …

3/22/2014 0

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U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Gifford Gets a Tracheostomy After 7 Days of Intubation

U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Gifford who is recovering from a gunshot wound to the head 7 days earlier had her breathing tube removed and a tracheostomy tube placed on January 15, 2011. Many people will wonder why a tracheostomy tube was placed when she's been intubated for only 7 days and even though she has been able to breath on her own since Tuesday. Along with the trach tube, a stomach feeding tube was also placed. A tracheostomy tube is a small tube placed through an opening in the nec…

1/16/2011 0

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