Journal of emergency nursing : JEN : official publication of the Emergency Department Nurses Association
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Clinical alarms promote patient safety by alerting clinicians when there is an indication or change in a condition requiring a response. An excessive volume of alarm fires, however, contributes to sensory overload and desensitization, referred to as alarm fatigue, which has significant implications when alarms are missed. This evidence-based, practice project aimed to implement and evaluate a program that reduces the number of clinically nonactionable, physiologic alarms in an emergency department. Although alarm fatigue is an important negative consequence, the focus of this project is not on alarm fatigue but on measures to reduce the volume of clinically nonactionable alarms that lead to alarm fatigue. The Iowa Model was used as a conceptual framework. ⋯ A reduction in nonactionable, physiologic alarms was attained after implementing multimodal strategies inclusive of adjusting default settings, staff education on managing alarms, and emphasis on staff accountability.
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Despite the plethora of research on the use of emergency department services for nonurgent primary health care, the vast majority of this research is quantitative in nature. To date, there is little research that reports on the problem from the patients' perspective and/or lived experience, which compromises health care providers' understanding of the essence of the problem as described by the patients. Thus, this study will provide a qualitative description of nonurgent ED visits from the patients' perspective. Specifically, this study answers the following research questions: 1) What are the reasons for patients and/or caregivers visiting the emergency department for nonurgent health conditions? and 2) What are the barriers experienced by patients and/or caregivers when seeking access to health care? ⋯ The results of the study can help inform patient-centered care and future policy initiatives that will address the practices and barriers contributing to nonurgent ED visits.