Computers, informatics, nursing : CIN
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Patient monitors generate alarms to signal changes in vital signs. Some research suggests these alarms can improve patient safety. Other reports caution that these systems generate false alarms and create nursing workflow interruptions. ⋯ They described learning to interpret alarm data and developing workaround strategies (eg, ignoring alarms). Paradoxically, alarms prompted nurses to regularly consider and interpret patient information. We suggest the interpretive work associated with workarounds may hold benefits mitigating the potential harms of ignoring alarms.