Work Interruptions and Their Contribution to Medication Administration Errors: An Evidence Review

[Ophthalmology telemedicine at Rennes University Medical Center: Evaluation of the secure platform OMNIDOC during its first year of use]

INTRODUCTION

Ophthalmology as a specialty is a pioneer in the area of telemedicine. Remote consultation represents one of the 5 types of telemedicine services, with a growing volume of activity in university hospitals. In November 2020, the ophthalmology department of Rennes University Medical Center launched its remote consultation network with the secured platform OMNIDOC. The goal of this study was to assess its contribution during its first year of use.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Beginning in November 2020, ophthalmology consults at Rennes University Medical Center were directed towards the dedicated OMNIDOC network. Three-hundred and forty-one requests for remote consultation were received and analyzed between November 2020 and October 2021. We sent a satisfaction survey to both the requesting and consultant physicians to assess whether or not the network was beneficial.

RESULTS

Three-hundred and twenty-seven remote consultations requested by 126 practitioners were included in the study. The median response time was 6hours. Every field of the specialty was involved, of which 22.3% were for pediatric patients under 6years of age. Among the requests, 89.7% were regional (Brittany) and came mostly from ophthalmologists (61.77%). Nearly one out of two patients did not require an in-person consultation at Rennes University Medical Center.

DISCUSSION

The implementation of a remote consultation network allowed access to a rapid, facilitated medical ophthalmology consultation. Such a platform delivers safety and traceability of the interactions. It enhances and optimizes the patients' care pathway and encourages relationships with community physicians.

Implementation of Pharmaceutical Technical Assistants on Hospital Wards and Their Impact on Patient Safety and Quality of Care: A Qualitative Study on Nurses' Experiences and Perceptions

Methods

In a qualitative descriptive study, between December 2022 and March 2023, 16 semistructured interviews were carried out with a stratified purposive sample of nurses across internal, surgical, and geriatric wards. The inclusion criteria required a minimum of six months of work experience and experience working both day and night shifts. Inductive thematic analysis was performed in NVivo 1.6.1.

Results

Semistructured interviews revealed three main themes: (1) patient safety and quality of care, (2) organization of care, and (3) role development and collaboration. The implementation of pharmaceutical technical assistants on nursing wards was perceived to reduce the risk of medication errors without compromising care quality, allowing nurses to spend more time on direct patient care. Clear communication procedures were vital for successful implementation, highlighting the need for collaboration and information exchange between pharmaceutical technical assistants and nurses. Continuity in assigning pharmaceutical technical assistants was highlighted as crucial to improve medication safety and quality of care. This is considered an important aspect to ensure a smooth and optimal cooperation between nurses and pharmaceutical technical assistants. Nurses expressed that working with pharmaceutical technical assistants challenged their supervisory role and teamwork dynamics.

Conclusions

Nurses confirmed the added value of pharmaceutical technical assistants in medication management. Critical factors included dedicated assignments to hospital wards, clear roles, and mutual expectations in collaboration with ward nurses.

Improving care safety by characterizing task interruptions during interactions between healthcare professionals: an observational study

Few studies have investigated interruptions to the work of professionals practicing in inpatient hospitals, and even fewer take account of the functions that make up the system. Safety of care can be improved by considering avoidable interruptions during interactions between managerial and care delivery functions. The present study describes the characteristics of interruptions to the work of professionals working in the inpatient hospital sector, with respect to their typology, frequency, duration, and avoidability in the context of interactions between functions. This direct observational study of interruptions in hospital care was performed in the Pays de la Loire (west coast) area of France. A total of 23 teams (17 institutions) working in medical or surgical specialties (excluding intensive care) were included. Observations were performed between May and September 2019, and lasted seven consecutive hours per team. A pair of observers simultaneously observed the same professional for ∼30 min. Each occupational category was examined. Reported characteristics were: (i) the method and duration of the request, (ii) the location of interrupted and interrupting persons, (iii) the reaction of the interrupted person, (iv) the characteristics of the interrupting person, and (v) the classification of interrupted and interrupting tasks according to their function. An avoidable interruption was defined. Interruptions during interactions between professionals were categorised in terms of their function and avoidability. Descriptive statistical analyses (mean, standard deviation, and distribution) were run. In particular, cross-comparisons were run to highlight avoidability interruptions and interactions between managerial and care delivery functions during the working day, for different professional categories, and for the location of the request. Overall, 286 interrupted professionals were observed and 1929 interruptions were characterised. The majority of interruptions were due to a face-to-face request (58.7%), lasting ≤30 s (72.5%). Professionals engaged in the response in 49.3% of cases. A total of 57.4% of interruptions were avoidable. The average number of interruptions was 10.5 (SD = 3.2) per hour per professional. An analysis of avoidability and interactions between managerial and care delivery functions found that the period between 12:00 and 13:00 was the riskiest in terms of care safety. This study highlighted the characteristics of interruptions to the activity of professionals working in inpatient hospitals. Care teams could focus on making medical and nursing professionals much more aware of the importance of interruptions, and each team could decide how to best-manage interruptions, in the context of their specific working environment.

Medication Dispensing by Pharmacy Technicians Improves Efficiency and Patient Safety at a Geriatric Ward at a Danish Hospital: A Pilot Study

BACKGROUND

This study aims to evaluate medication dispensing by pharmacy technicians at a geriatric inpatient ward at a Danish hospital.

METHODS

Four pharmacy technicians were trained in delivering a dispensing service at a geriatric ward. At baseline, the ward nurses recorded the time spent dispensing the medication and the number of interruptions. Similar recordings were completed twice during the period in which the pharmacy technicians delivered the dispensing service. Satisfaction among the ward staff with the dispensing service was assessed by a questionnaire. Reported medication errors were collected during the dispensing service period and compared to a similar time period during the previous two years.

RESULTS

The time spent on dispensing medications was on average reduced with 1.4 h per day ranging from 4.7 to 3.3 h per day when the pharmacy technicians performed the service. Interruptions during the dispensing process decreased from a daily average of more than 19 times to an average of 2-3 per day. The nursing staff reported positive feedback on the medication dispensing service provided, especially about easing their workload. There was a tendency toward decreased reporting of medication errors.

CONCLUSION

The medication dispensing service performed by the pharmacy technicians reduced time spent on dispensing medication and increased patient safety by reducing interruptions during the process and decreasing the number of medication errors reported.

Task interruptions from the perspective of work functions: The development of an observational tool applied to inpatient hospital care in France The Team'IT tool

BACKGROUND

In France, hospital units responsible for providing inpatient care have few opportunities to address the issue of task interruptions. In Australia, the Dual Perspectives Method (DMP) has been developed to assess interruptions. The method makes it possible to link teamwork and interruptions, by considering the work functions that constitute the system.

OBJECTIVE

To develop a tool that can characterize interruptions from the point of view of work functions that is tailored to French hospital units providing inpatient care. The aim was to adapt the items recorded using the DPM and their response categories, and to study the acceptability of observing interruptions for participating teams.

METHOD

The items recorded in the DPM were translated and adapted taking into account the French definition of interruptions. This step identified 19 items that targeted the interrupted professional, and 16 that targeted the interrupting professional. The characteristics of interruptions were recorded in September 2019 among 23 volunteer teams in a region in western France. Two observers simultaneously observed the same professional. Observations lasted seven consecutive hours, and targeted all professional categories within the same team.

RESULTS

The characteristics of 1,929 interruptions were noted. The observation period was well-received by teams. The following terminology regarding the work functions of the interrupting professional was clarified: "coordination of institutional resources", in relation to "the establishment's support processes", "patient services", and "the patient's social life". We believe that our categorization of response modes is exhaustive.

CONCLUSIONS

We have developed an observational tool, Team'IT, which is tailored to inpatient hospital care in France. Its implementation is the first step in a system to support teams in managing interruptions, and will enable them to reflect on their working methods, and whether interruptions can be avoided. Our work is part of an approach that seeks to improve and enhance the safety of professional practices, by contributing to the longstanding, complex debate about the flow and effectiveness of patient care.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03786874 (December 26, 2018).

Study protocol for the implementation and evaluation of a digital-robotic-based intervention for nurses and patients in a hospital: a quantitative and qualitative triangulation based on the Medical Research Council (MRC) framework for developing and evaluating complex interventions

BACKGROUND

Nurses spend part of their working time on non-nursing tasks. Unnecessary walking distances and the assumption of service activities and other non-care-related tasks take up a lot of space, which reduces the time for direct patient care and demonstrably increases the dissatisfaction of the persons involved. The REsPonSe project aims to relieve nursing staff by using a smartphone app for communication in combination with an autonomous service robot to reduce walking distances and service activities. The technical systems are tested on a nuclear medicine ward and are intended to reduce the radiation exposure of the staff. The aim of this study is to test and evaluate the use and intervention of the technical systems, the acceptance of the users and the change in the utilisation of the nursing service. In addition to findings on usability and manageability, effects on nursing practice, as well as facilitating and inhibiting contextual factors for implementation, will be identified.

METHODS

The Medical Research Council (MRC) Framework for Developing and Evaluating for Complex Interventions was chosen as the theoretical basis. The data collection in the Feasibility and Evaluation phase is a triangulation of quantitative and qualitative methods. Standardised observations are planned to collect data on non-care activities and walking distances, and a survey of utilisation by use of a questionnaire based on the NASA TLX. Qualitative individual interviews with patients and group discussions with nursing staff will be conducted. Statements on the subjective experiences, as well as the evaluation of the use of the digital-robotic system in the clinical setting, will be collected. The descriptive evaluation of the usage and retrieval data will provide information on duration, time, requests, and reduced contact times, as well as error and fault messages.

DISCUSSION

The evaluation study will make it possible to represent a variety of perspectives from different interest groups. The results should contribute to the definition of implementation and evaluation criteria and facilitate the integration of digital-robotic assistance systems in nursing acute inpatient settings.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

The trial was registered with the German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS) on 16.02.2022: DRKS00028127.

Medication administration errors and associated factors among nurses in Addis Ababa federal hospitals, Ethiopia: a hospital-based cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVE

This study was conducted to assess the magnitude and contributing factors of medication administration errors among nurses in federal hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

DESIGN

A hospital-based cross-sectional study design was employed. Data on medication administration and associated factors were collected using a structured self-administered questionnaire. Multivariable binary logistic regression analysis was done to identify factors associated with medication administration errors on the basis of adjusted OR with 95% CI and a p value less than 0.05.

SETTING

This study was conducted in federal hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

PARTICIPANTS

Four hundred and twenty-three randomly selected nurses participated.

OUTCOME MEASURES

The primary outcome variable is medication administration error, which was ascertained using the following errors: wrong medication, wrong dose, wrong time, wrong route, wrong patient, wrong drug preparation, wrong advice, wrong assessment and wrong documentations.

RESULTS

A total of 59.9% (95% CI: 55.0% to 64.8%) of the nurses in the federal hospitals in Addis Ababa committed one or more medication administration errors in the last 12 months prior to the survey. The most commonly reported medication errors were wrong time (56.8%), wrong documentation (33.3%), wrong advice (27.8%) and wrong dose (20.1%). Medication administration errors among nurses were significantly associated with short work experience (adjusted OR (AOR): 6.48, 95% CI: 1.32 to 31.78), night shift work (AOR: 5.0, 95% CI: 1.82 to 13.78), absence of on-the-job training (AOR: 3.16, 95% CI: 1.67 to 6.00), unavailability of medication administration guidelines in wards (AOR: 2.07, 95% CI: 1.06 to 4.06) and interruptions during medication administration (AOR: 2.42, 95% CI: 1.30 to 4.49).

CONCLUSION

It was found that a high proportion of nurses in federal hospitals committed medication administration errors. Short work experience, night shift work, absence of on-the-job training, unavailability of medication administration guidelines and interruptions during medication administration explained the high magnitude of medication administration errors.

Implementation of an Electronic Health Record-Based Messaging System in the Emergency Department: Effects on Physician Workflow and Resident Burnout

INTRODUCTION

The traditional methods of communication between nurses and physicians through paging or phone calls have been known to cause patient care interruptions, increase stress and workload, and cause burnout. Our study assessed the impact of using an electronic health record-based messaging system (Epic Secure Chat) for nonemergent communication between nurses and physicians in the emergency department (ED).

METHOD

This study was performed at a large urban academic ED. Surveys were distributed through e-mail using Google forms. Preimplementation and postimplementation surveys were performed from May 2019 (presurvey) to August 2019 (postsurvey).

RESULT

The number of nonurgent phone calls from registered nurse staff decreased after intervention (P < 0.001). The frequency of nonurgent calls disrupting workflow decreased after the intervention (P = 0.029). The number of calls that were appropriately alerted to increased but was not significant (P = 0.120), whereas the degree of burnout from nonurgent calls remained relatively the same (P = 0.841).

CONCLUSIONS

The findings provide insight into the implementation of an EMR messaging system in an ED setting. These findings suggest the messaging system can decrease unnecessary nonurgent calls from registered nurses and medical doctors, allowing for more efficient workflow in the ED. These findings suggest further research especially regarding burnout implemented on a larger scale and yield redesign suggestions in the ED.

The art of making the right exception to the "rule": Nurses' experiences with drug dispensing in nursing homes

Nurses are key professionals in ensuring safe drug management in nursing homes, and their practice is regulated by a number of guidelines. The present study aimed to explore nurses' experiences of dispensing drugs to older people in nursing homes by using an exploratory qualitative design. Focus group interviews were conducted in three nursing homes in central Norway; the data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. The results indicated that drug dispensing was perceived as a complicated process during which both anticipated and unforeseen challenges arose that influenced the nurses' abilities to follow professional standards. In these situations, the nurses had to apply their knowledge and make various adjustments based on conditions in the organization and the needs of individual patients. The findings have implications for facilitating nurses' working conditions and resources to avoid drug administration that limit the discretion of nurses and threaten patient safety in nursing homes.

Investigating the cognitive capacity constraints of an ICU care team using a systems engineering approach

Background

ICU operational conditions may contribute to cognitive overload and negatively impact on clinical decision making. We aimed to develop a quantitative model to investigate the association between the operational conditions and the quantity of medication orders as a measurable indicator of the multidisciplinary care team’s cognitive capacity.

Methods

The temporal data of patients at one medical ICU (MICU) of Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN between February 2016 to March 2018 was used. This dataset includes a total of 4822 unique patients admitted to the MICU and a total of 6240 MICU admissions. Guided by the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety model, quantifiable measures attainable from electronic medical records were identified and a conceptual framework of distributed cognition in ICU was developed. Univariate piecewise Poisson regression models were built to investigate the relationship between system-level workload indicators, including patient census and patient characteristics (severity of illness, new admission, and mortality risk) and the quantity of medication orders, as the output of the care team’s decision making.

Results

Comparing the coefficients of different line segments obtained from the regression models using a generalized F-test, we identified that, when the ICU was more than 50% occupied (patient census > 18), the number of medication orders per patient per hour was significantly reduced (average = 0.74; standard deviation (SD) = 0.56 vs. average = 0.65; SD = 0.48; p < 0.001). The reduction was more pronounced (average = 0.81; SD = 0.59 vs. average = 0.63; SD = 0.47; p < 0.001), and the breakpoint shifted to a lower patient census (16 patients) when at a higher presence of severely-ill patients requiring invasive mechanical ventilation during their stay, which might be encountered in an ICU treating patients with COVID-19.

Conclusions

Our model suggests that ICU operational factors, such as admission rates and patient severity of illness may impact the critical care team’s cognitive function and result in changes in the production of medication orders. The results of this analysis heighten the importance of increasing situational awareness of the care team to detect and react to changing circumstances in the ICU that may contribute to cognitive overload.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12871-021-01548-7.

Usability of smart infusion pumps: A heuristic evaluation

Although smart infusion pumps were built to eliminate medication errors, new types of usability errors have arisen. The purposes of this study were to determine potential risks when using smart pumps during secondary medication administration and to identify opportunities for design improvements. We observed and analyzed nurses when they interacted with smart pumps and heuristically evaluated the smart pump to identify usability problems. Forty-three usability problems were identified with the smart pump. The usability problems have the potential to create high cognitive burden on nurses and to increase the likelihood of mistakes. We discuss design and process improvement recommendations for each major finding from this study.

Working in a minefield; Nurses' strategies for handling medicine administration interruptions in hospitals, -a qualtiative interview study

BACKGROUND

Administering medicines is one of the most high-risk tasks in health care. However, nurses are frequently interrupted during medicine administration, which jeopardises patient safety. Few studies have examined nurses' experiences and the strategies they adopt to cope with interruptions during medicine rounds. This paper identifies nurses' strategies for handling and reducing interruptions and ensuring safety during medicine rounds, within the confines of the hospitals' organisational systems.

METHODS

This descriptive and exploratory research study was undertaken with experienced nurses in Norwegian hospitals in 2015 using semi-structured interviews. Interviews were designed to elicit experiences and strategies used for handling interruptions to medicine rounds. Data were analysed using qualitative content analysis based on inductive reasoning to identify meaningful subjects and reach an interpretive level of understanding regarding nurses' experiences.

RESULTS

All 19 senior nurses who were approached were interviewed. From 644 condensed meaning units, we identified eight interpretative units and three themes: 'working in environments of interruptions', 'personal coping strategies', and 'management-related strategies'. Nurses' working environments were characterised by interruptions and distractions, which often threatened patient safety. To handle this unpredictability and maintain ward organisation, nurses developed their own personal strategies to overcome inherent problems with their working conditions, the absence of effective management, and colleagues' reluctance to assume responsibility for minimising interruptions.

CONCLUSIONS

Administration of medicines in hospitals can be described as 'working in a minefield'. Our findings indicate that the hospital management, in cooperation with nurses and other healthcare professionals, should take responsibility for improving the routine process of medicine administration by minimising avoidable interruptions. Patient safety can be improved when the hospital management takes steps to protect nurses' work environments and assumes responsibility for resolving these challenges.

Effectiveness of a 'do not interrupt' vest intervention to reduce medication errors during medication administration: a multicenter cluster randomized controlled trial

Background

The use of a ‘do not interrupt’ vest during medication administration rounds is recommended but there have been no controlled randomized studies to evaluate its impact on reducing administration errors. We aimed to evaluate the impact of wearing such a vest on reducing such errors. The secondary objectives were to evaluate the types and potential clinical impact of errors, the association between errors and several risk factors (such as interruptions), and nurses’ experiences.

Methods

This was a multicenter, cluster, controlled, randomized study (March–July 2017) in 29 adult units (4 hospitals). Data were collected by direct observation by trained observers. All nurses from selected units were informed. A ‘Do not interrupt’ vest was implemented in all units of the experimental group. A poster was placed at the entrance of these units to inform patients and relatives. The main outcome was the administration error rate (number of Opportunities for Error (OE), calculated as one or more errors divided by the Total Opportunities for Error (TOE) and multiplied by 100).

Results

We enrolled 178 nurses and 1346 patients during 383 medication rounds in 14 units in the experimental group and 15 units in the control group. During the intervention period, the administration error rates were 7.09% (188 OE with at least one error/2653 TOE) for the experimental group and 6.23% (210 OE with at least one error/3373 TOE) for the control group (p = 0.192). Identified risk factors (patient age, nurses’ experience, nurses’ workload, unit exposition, and interruption) were not associated with the error rate. The main error type observed for both groups was wrong dosage-form. Most errors had no clinical impact for the patient and the interruption rates were 15.04% for the experimental group and 20.75% for the control group.

Conclusions

The intervention vest had no impact on medication administration error or interruption rates. Further studies need to be performed taking into consideration the limitations of our study and other risk factors associated with other interventions, such as nurse’s training and/or a barcode system.

Trial registration

The PERMIS study protocol (V2–1, 11/04/2017) was approved by institutional review boards and ethics committees (CPP Ile de France number 2016-A00211–50, CNIL 21/03/2017, CCTIRS 11/04/2016). It is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (registration number: NCT03062852, date of first registration: 23/02/2017).

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12912-021-00671-7.

Separate Medication Preparation Rooms Reduce Interruptions and Medication Errors in the Hospital Setting: A Prospective Observational Study

BACKGROUND

Interruptions and errors during the medication process are common, but published literature shows no evidence supporting whether separate medication rooms are an effective single intervention in reducing interruptions and errors during medication preparation in hospitals. We tested the hypothesis that the rate of interruptions and reported medication errors would decrease as a result of the introduction of separate medication rooms.

AIM

Our aim was to evaluate the effect of separate medication rooms on interruptions during medication preparation and on self-reported medication error rates.

METHODS

We performed a preintervention and postintervention study using direct structured observation of nurses during medication preparation and daily structured medication error self-reporting of nurses by questionnaires in 2 wards at a major teaching hospital in Switzerland.

RESULTS

A volunteer sample of 42 nurses was observed preparing 1498 medications for 366 patients over 17 hours preintervention and postintervention on both wards. During 122 days, nurses completed 694 reporting sheets containing 208 medication errors. After the introduction of the separate medication room, the mean interruption rate decreased significantly from 51.8 to 30 interruptions per hour (P < 0.01), and the interruption-free preparation time increased significantly from 1.4 to 2.5 minutes (P < 0.05). Overall, the mean medication error rate per day was also significantly reduced after implementation of the separate medication room from 1.3 to 0.9 errors per day (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

The present study showed the positive effect of a hospital-based intervention; after the introduction of the separate medication room, the interruption and medication error rates decreased significantly.

Creating a "Culture of Triage": A Dual-Perspective Study of Interruptions During ICU Rounds

OBJECTIVES

To explore interrupters' and interruptees' experiences of interruptions occurring during morning rounds in a PICU in an attempt to understand better how to limit interruptions that threaten patient safety.

DESIGN

Qualitative ethnographic study including observations, field interviews, and in-depth interviews.

SETTING

A 55-bed PICU in a free-standing, quaternary-care children's hospital.

SUBJECTS PARTICIPANTS

Attending physicians, fellow physicians, frontline clinicians (resident physicians and nurse practitioners), and nurses working in the PICU.

INTERVENTIONS

Data collection occurred in two parts: 1) field observations during morning rounds with brief field interviews conducted with participants involved in an observed interruption and 2) in-depth interviews conducted with selected participants from prior field observations.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

Data were coded using a constant comparative method with thematic analysis, clustering codes into groups, and subsequently into themes. We observed 11 rounding encounters (17 hr of observation and 48 patient encounters), conducting 25 field interviews and eight in-depth interviews. Themes included culture of interruption triage, interruption triage criteria, and barriers to interruption triage. Interruptees desired forming a culture of triage, whereby less-urgent interruptions were deferred until later or addressed through an asynchronous method; this desire was misaligned with interrupters who described ongoing interruption triage based on clinical changes, time-sensitivity, and interrupter comfort, despite not having a formal triage algorithm. Barriers to interruption triage included a lack of situational awareness and experience among interrupters and interruptees.

CONCLUSIONS

Interrupters and interruptees did not have a shared understanding of the culture of triage within the PICU. Although interrupters attempted to triage interruptions, no formal triage algorithm existed and interruptees did not perceive a triaging culture. Using data from this study, we created a triage algorithm that could inform future studies, potentially decrease unnecessary interruptions, and optimize information sharing for essential interruptions.

[Reducing mid-task interruptions during medication preparation]

Nurses are regularly interrupted when performing their tasks. Yet studies have shown that there is a link between the fact of being interrupted when preparing medication and the increased risk of making a mistake. Seeking to reinforce the safety of the medication preparation stage, a team in Normandy studied the benefit, for the nurse, of wearing ear plugs during this specific time.

Reducing interruptions during medication preparation and administration

PURPOSE

According to literature, interruptions during drug administration lead to a significant proportion of medication errors. Evidence on the effectiveness of interventions to reduce interruption is still limited. The purpose of this paper is to explore main reasons for interruptions during drug administration rounds in a geriatric ward of an Italian secondary hospital and test the effectiveness of a combined intervention.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH

This is a pre and post-intervention observational study based on direct observation. All nurse staff (24) participated to the study that lead to observe a total of 44 drug dispensing rounds with 945 drugs administered to 491 patients in T0 and 994 drugs to 506 patients in T1.

FINDINGS

A significant reduction of raw number of interruptions (mean per round from 17.31 in T0 to 9.09 in T1, p<0.01), interruptions/patient rate (from 0.78 in T0 to 0.40 in T1, p<0.01) and interruptions/drugs rate (from 0.44 in T0 to 0.22 in T1, p<0.01) were observed. Needs for further improvements were elicited (e.g. a greater involvement of support staff).

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

Nurse staff should be adequately trained on the risks related to interruptions during drug administration since routine activity is at high risk of distractions due to its repetitive and skill-based nature.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE

A strong involvement of both MB and leadership, together with the frontline staff, helped to raise staff motivation and guide a bottom-up approach, able to identify tailored interventions and serve concurrently as training instrument tool.

The Effectiveness of Interventions to Reduce the Nurses’ Distractions during Medication Administration: A Systematic Review

Introduction: Nurses constitute the largest group of health professionals who work in the hospital setting and most of the medications in the setting are administered by nurses. Errors related to medication conducted by a nurse frequently occur during medication administration. Interruptions or distractions during medication administration have been identified as significant contributory factors to medication administration errors (MAEs).Methods: This systematic review critically reviewed the evidence of the effectiveness of the interventions that aim to reduce nurse interruptions or distractions during medication administration. The search for the relevant literature was conducted in August 2018 using three databases; Medline, Cinahl and Embase.Results: Nineteen full text articles were retrieved and reviewed, and 7 articles were included in this review. Five of these studies showed evidence of a reduction in the interruption or distraction rates in post-intervention measurements, while 4 studies reported a statistically significant reduction in the interruption or distraction rates, with p values between 0.0005 and 0.002.Conclusion: There was limited evidence available to support the effectiveness of the interventions in terms of either reducing the interruptions or distractions of the nurses during the medication administration or in terms of reducing the medication administration error rates.

Impact of interruptions on the duration of nursing interventions: A study in a chemotherapy unit

Abstract Objective: To investigate interruptions during nursing interventions in a chemotherapy unit (sources and causes); measure their frequency, duration and the total elapsed time to complete the interventions. Method: This is an observational analytical study performed using a digital stopwatch. It was conducted in a teaching hospital between 2015/2016. The interventions performed and their interruptions were mapped and classified according to the Nursing Interventions Classifications (NIC) taxonomy. Results: There were 492 interruptions recorded in the 107 hours observed, especially in indirect care interventions. They were mainly caused by nursing professionals (n = 289; 57.3%) to supply materials (n = 65; 12.8%) and exchange care information (n = 65; 12.8%). The duration of interruptions ranged from 0:08 to 9:09 (average 1:15; SD 1:03) minutes. On average, interventions took 2:16 (SD 0:27) minutes to complete without interruption; however, the average was 5:59 (SD 3:01) minutes when interrupted. Conclusion: The interruptions were constant during the nursing work in the chemotherapy unit, including during the preparation and administration of medications, and increased the time to complete the interventions by an average of 163.9%.

Analysis of Medication Errors and near Misses Made by Nursing Students

Despite extensive research and technological advancements, errors related to medication administration continue to rise annually. The body of evidence surrounding medication errors has focused largely on licensed practicing nurses. Nursing students can offer a unique perspective regarding medication administration as their foundation for professional psychomotor skills and cognitive abilities are developed. The purpose of this study was to explore the variables related to medication errors made by pre-licensure nursing students. Data were collected from 2013–2015 in a pre-licensure program. Students completed a post-error survey available in Google Forms. One hundred thirteen responses to the error report were completed. By exploring the factors related to medication errors among nursing students, teaching and learning strategies forming the foundations of medication administration can improve professional nursing practice and improve safety and quality of care.

NICU Nurses' Stress and Work Environment in an Open Ward Compared to a Combined Pod and Single-Family Room Design

BACKGROUND

The architectural design of a neonatal intensive care unit may affect the quality of the work environment for nurses, yet few studies have been conducted using reliable and valid measures. Recent studies have suggested some drawbacks of single-family rooms (SFRs) for both infants and parents. Research is needed to explore nurses' work environment in units combining pods and SFRs.

PURPOSE

To compare neonatal intensive care unit nurses' work stress, satisfaction, obstacles, support, team effectiveness, ability to provide family-centered care, and satisfaction with noise, light, and sightlines in an open ward with a new unit of pods and SFRs.

METHODS

A pre-post occupancy study was conducted in a level 3 unit before and after transitioning to a new unit of 6-bed pods and SFRs.

RESULTS

There were no significant differences in nurse stress, satisfaction, support from colleagues, perceptions of team effectiveness, and ability to provide family-centered care between the open ward and the pod/SFR unit. Organizational obstacles, such as difficulties obtaining information from colleagues, were significantly lower in the pod/SFR. In contrast, environmental and technology obstacles were greater in the new pod/SFR unit.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

Some specific aspects of the pod/SFR unit are optimal for neonatal intensive care unit nurses, while other aspects of the open ward are perceived more favorably.

IMPLICATIONS FOR RESEARCH

Studies are needed to examine the isolation the nurses may experience in SFR units, as well as strategies to reduce isolation.

Nurses' perspectives on pharmacology: why, what and at which point of the curricula should education be delivered?

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

the study aimed to capture the views of nursing students and qualified nurses about pharmacology education and at which point the subject should be taught.

BACKGROUND

drug errors are common in clinical practice. However, the presence of pharmacology education in nursing curricula varies, with few higher education institutes focusing on the topic in pre-registration years.

DESIGN

a cross-sectional survey was carried out with 46 pre-registration, 18 post-qualification and 15 post-qualification nurse prescribing course students.

RESULTS

most agreed that pharmacology education was crucial for practice. Post-qualification participants ranked the topics of ethics and law as applied to pharmacology higher than pre-registration students. Qualified nurses ranked the topic of pharmacokinetics statistically higher than pre-registration students. Equal numbers of qualified participants favoured having pharmacology education as part of pre- and post-qualification programmes, either as a discrete module or incorporated in core modules. Pre-registration participants thought pharmacology education should be integrated throughout the programme. Most participants thought it should be taught face to face in the classroom.

CONCLUSION

pharmacology education is valued by all nurses. Respondents mostly favoured a gradual integration of the subject in a programme of study, face to face.

Interruptions and Delivery of Care in the Intensive Care Unit

OBJECTIVE

This study samples interruption frequency in intensive care unit (ICU) settings to assess the relationship between interruptions and common patient hazards.

BACKGROUND

Task interruptions are accident contributors in numerous industries. Recently, studies on health care interruptions and their impact on patient hazards have received attention.

METHOD

Seven ICUs in four hospitals participated in a 24-month study. Experienced ICU nurses directly observed nursing tasks, interruptions, and patient hazards (delays in care, breaks in device task protocols, and patient safety hazards).

RESULTS

During 1,148 hours of observation, 175 nurses performed 74,733 nursing tasks. Interruptions occurred at a rate of 4.95 per hour, and 8.4% of tasks were interrupted. Interruptions originated mostly from humans (65.9%), alarms (24.1%), and others (10%). A total of 774 patient hazards were observed, with a hazard occurring on average every 89 minutes. Relative to noninterrupted tasks, device alarm interrupted nonstructured tasks were associated with increased rates of delays in care and safety hazards (rate ratio [RR] = 3.19). In contrast, rate of delays in care and safety hazards did not increase during human interrupted tasks (RR = 1.13). Rates of protocol nonadherence varied by device type and were highest during artificial airway, medication administration, chest tube, and supplemental oxygen management.

CONCLUSION

Interruptions in the ICU are frequent and contribute to patient hazards, especially when caused by device alarms during nonstructured tasks. Nonadherence to protocols is common and contributed to patient hazards.

APPLICATION

The findings suggest a need for improvement in task and device design to reduce patient hazards.

Randomized controlled evaluation of an insulin pen storage policy

PURPOSE

Results of a quality-improvement project to enhance safeguards against "wrong-pen-to-patient" insulin pen errors by permitting secure bedside storage of insulin pens are reported.

METHODS

A cluster-randomized controlled evaluation was conducted at an academic medical center to assess adherence with institutional policy on insulin pen storage before and after implementation of a revised policy allowing pen storage in locking boxes in patient rooms. In phase 1 of the study, baseline data on policy adherence were captured for 8 patient care units (4 designated as intervention units and 4 designated as control units). In phase 2, policy adherence was assessed through direct observation during weekly audits after lock boxes were installed on intervention units and education on proper insulin pen storage was provided to nurses in all 8 units.

RESULTS

Phase 1 rates of adherence to insulin pen storage policy were 59% in the intervention units and 49% in the control units (p = 0.56). During phase 2, there was no significant change from baseline in control unit adherence (67%, p = 0.26), but adherence in intervention units improved significantly, to 89% (p = 0.005). Common types of observed nonadherence included pens being unsecured in patient rooms or nurses' pockets or left in patient-specific medication drawers after patient discharge.

CONCLUSION

An institutional policy change permitting secure storage of insulin pens close to the point of care, paired with nurse education, increased adherence more than education alone.

The Impact of Phone Interruptions on the Quality of Simulated Medication Order Validation Using Eye Tracking: A Pilot Study

INTRODUCTION

Order validation is an important component of pharmacy services, where pharmacists review orders with a focus on error prevention. Interruptions are frequent and may contribute to a reduction in error detection, thus potential medication errors. However, studying such errors in practice is difficult. Simulation has potential to study these events.

METHODS

This was a pilot, simulation study. The primary objective was to determine the rate of medication error detection and the effect of interruptions on error detection during simulated validation. Secondary objectives included determining time to complete each prescription page. The scenario consisted of validating three handwritten medication order pages containing 12 orders and 17 errors, interrupted by three phone calls timed during one order for each page. Participants were categorized in groups: seniors and juniors (including residents). Simulation sessions were videotaped and eye tracking was used to assist in analysis.

RESULTS

Eight senior and five junior pharmacists were included in the analysis. There was a significant association between interruption and error detection (odds ratio = 0.149, 95% confidence interval = 0.042-0.525, P = 0.005). This association did not vary significantly between groups (P = 0.832). Juniors took more time to validate the first page (10 minutes 56 seconds vs. 6 minutes 42 seconds) but detected more errors (95% vs. 69%). However, all major errors were detected by all participants.

CONCLUSIONS

We observed an association between phone interruptions and a decrease in error detection during simulated validation. Simulation provides an opportunity to study order validation by pharmacists and may be a valuable teaching tool for pharmacists and pharmacy residents learning order validation.

[Distinctive tabard: A solution to avoid work interruptions in the blood transfusion?]

AIM

In the blood transfusion, the interruption of work (IW) can lead to serious incidents and/or adverse effects. The aim of our work is to evaluate the wearing of a distinctive tabard in the IW.

METHODS

Several voluntary departments from 5 establishments of health in the Center-Val de Loire region have participated in this work from October to December 2017. The survey was given to nurses (identified by the first three letters of the first name) before and after wearing the tabard (for 2 months) for all transfusions realized in their respective department. We matched the survey by nurse and by department. The Student t test was conducted to evaluate the contribution of the tabard during IW.

RESULTS

One hundred and one survey (31 in surgery, 70 in medicine) were collected before wearing and 91 (27 in surgery, 64 in medicine) after wearing the tabard. Before wearing the tabard, the number of nurse having or not IW was the same. After wearing the tabard, 42% had an IW and 58% didn't had IW (P=0.43; χ2). Sixty-four surveys were matched (27 exclusions : different IDEs) according to IW before and after wearing the tabard. The wearing of the tabard allows a statistically significant decrease IW (z=2.61, P=0.009, student test).

CONCLUSION

Wearing the tabard during blood transfusions is statistically significant means of reducing IW. It's probably a first solution to increase the security of the act, to which must be added other means (poster, phone management, poster and information campaign). It's easier to eliminate IW than to manage.

Interruptions during intravenous medication administration: A multicentre observational study

AIMS

The aim of this study was to determine the frequency and cause of interruptions during intravenous medication administration, which factors are associated with interruptions and to what extent interruptions influence protocol compliance.

BACKGROUND

Hospital nurses are frequently interrupted during medication administration, which contributes to the occurrence of administration errors. Errors with intravenous medication are especially worrisome, given their immediate therapeutic effects. However, knowledge about the extent and type of interruptions during intravenous medication administration is limited.

DESIGN

Multicentre observational study.

METHODS

Data were collected during two national evaluation studies (2011 - 2012 & 2015 - 2016). Nurses were directly observed during intravenous medication administration. An interruption was defined as a situation where a break during the administration was needed or where a nurse was distracted but could process without a break. Interruptions were categorized according to source and cause. Multilevel logistic regression analyses were conducted to assess the associations between explanatory variables and interruptions or complete protocol compliance.

RESULTS

In total, 2,526 intravenous medication administration processes were observed. During 291 (12%) observations, nurses were interrupted 321 times. Most interruptions were externally initiated by other nurses (19%) or patients (19%). Less interruptions occurred during the evening (odds ratio: 0.23 [95% confidence interval: 0.08-0.62]). Do-not-disturb vests were worn by 61 (2%) nurses. No significant association was found between being interrupted and complete protocol compliance.

CONCLUSION

An interruption occurred in every eight observed intravenous medication administration, mainly caused by other nurses or patients. One needs to consider critically which strategies effectively improve safety during the high-risk nursing-task of intravenous medication administration.

Direct Observation of Medication Errors in Critical Care Setting: A Systematic Review

Medication errors continue to be an issue for the critically ill and are costly to both patients and health care facilities. This article reviews published research about these errors and reports results of observational studies. The types of errors, incidence, and root causes have been considered along with adverse consequences. The implications for bedside practice as a result of this review are fairly straightforward. Medication errors are happening at an alarming rate in the critical care environment, and these errors are preventable. It is imperative that all personnel respect and follow established guidelines and procedural safeguards to ensure flawless drug delivery to patients.

Progressive Care Nurses Improving Patient Safety by Limiting Interruptions During Medication Administration

BACKGROUND

Because of the high frequency of interruptions during medication administration, the effectiveness of strategies to limit interruptions during medication administration has been evaluated in numerous quality improvement initiatives in an effort to reduce medication administration errors.

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the effectiveness of evidence-based strategies to limit interruptions during scheduled, peak medication administration times in 3 progressive cardiac care units (PCCUs). A secondary aim of the project was to evaluate the impact of limiting interruptions on medication errors.

METHODS

The percentages of interruptions and medication errors before and after implementation of evidence-based strategies to limit interruptions were measured by using direct observations of nurses on 2 PCCUs. Nurses in a third PCCU served as a comparison group.

RESULTS

Interruptions (P < .001) and medication errors (P = .02) decreased significantly in 1 PCCU after implementation of evidence-based strategies to limit interruptions. Avoidable interruptions decreased 83% in PCCU1 and 53% in PCCU2 after implementation of the evidence-based strategies.

CONCLUSIONS

Implementation of evidence-based strategies to limit interruptions in PCCUs decreases avoidable interruptions and promotes patient safety.

Medication administration and interruptions in nursing homes: A qualitative observational study

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

To contribute in-depth knowledge of the characteristics of medication administration and interruptions in nursing homes. The following research questions guided the study: How can the medication administration process in nursing homes be described? How can interruptions during the medication administration process in nursing homes be characterized?

BACKGROUND

Medication administration is a vital process across healthcare settings, and earlier research in nursing homes is sparse. The medication administration process is prone to interruptions that may lead to adverse drug events. On the other hand, interruptions may also have positive effects on patient safety.

DESIGN

A qualitative observational study design was applied.

METHODS

Data were collected using partial participant observations. An inductive content analysis was performed.

RESULTS

Factors that contributed to the observed complexity of medication administration in nursing homes were the high number of single tasks, varying degree of linearity, the variability of technological solutions, demands regarding documentation and staff's apparent freedom as to how and where to perform medication-related activities. Interruptions during medication administration are prevalent and can be characterised as passive (e.g., alarm and background noises), active (e.g., discussions) or technological interruptions (e.g., use of mobile applications). Most interruptions have negative outcomes, while some have positive outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS

A process of normalisation has taken place whereby staff put up with second-rate technological solutions, noise and interruptions when they are performing medication-related tasks. Before seeking to minimise interruptions during the medication administration process, it is important to understand the interconnectivity of the elements using a systems approach.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE

Staff and management need to be aware of the normalisation of interruptions. Knowledge of the complexity of medication administration may raise awareness and highlight the importance of maintaining and enhancing staff competence.

Impact of Frequent Interruption on Nurses' Patient-Controlled Analgesia Programming Performance

OBJECTIVE

The purpose was to add to the body of knowledge regarding the impact of interruption on acute care nurses' cognitive workload, total task completion times, nurse frustration, and medication administration error while programming a patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) pump.

BACKGROUND

Data support that the severity of medication administration error increases with the number of interruptions, which is especially critical during the administration of high-risk medications. Bar code technology, interruption-free zones, and medication safety vests have been shown to decrease administration-related errors. However, there are few published data regarding the impact of number of interruptions on nurses' clinical performance during PCA programming.

METHOD

Nine acute care nurses completed three PCA pump programming tasks in a simulation laboratory. Programming tasks were completed under three conditions where the number of interruptions varied between two, four, and six. Outcome measures included cognitive workload (six NASA Task Load Index [NASA-TLX] subscales), total task completion time (seconds), nurse frustration (NASA-TLX Subscale 6), and PCA medication administration error (incorrect final programming).

RESULTS

Increases in the number of interruptions were associated with significant increases in total task completion time ( p = .003). We also found increases in nurses' cognitive workload, nurse frustration, and PCA pump programming errors, but these increases were not statistically significant.

APPLICATIONS

Complex technology use permeates the acute care nursing practice environment. These results add new knowledge on nurses' clinical performance during PCA pump programming and high-risk medication administration.

Work Interruption Experienced by Nurses during Medication Administration Process and Associated Factors, Northwest Ethiopia

BACKGROUND

During medication administration process, including preparation, administration, and documentation, there is high proportion of work interruption that results in medication administration errors that consequently affect the safety of patients. Thus, the main purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of work interruption and associated factors during medication administration process.

METHODS

A prospective, observation-based, cross-sectional study was conducted on 278 nurses. Structure observational sheet was utilized to collect data. EPI Info version 3.5.3 and SPSS version 20 software were utilized for data entry and analysis, respectively. Binary and multivariable logistic regression were fitted to identify the associated factors using an odds ratio and 95% CI.

RESULTS

The incidence of work interruption was found to be 1,152 during medication administration process. Of this, 579 (50.3%) were major/severe work interruptions. Unit of work, day of the week, professional experience, perceived severity of work interruption, source/initiator of interruption, and secondary tasks were factors significantly associated with major work interruptions at p < 0.05.

CONCLUSION

In this study, more than half of work interruption was major/severe. Thus, the authors suggest raising the awareness of nurses regarding the severity of work interruptions, with special attention to those who have lower work experience, sources of interruption, and secondary tasks by assigning additional nurses who manage secondary tasks and supportive supervision.

The culture contributing to interruptions in the nursing work environment: An ethnography

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

To understand the occurrence of interruptions within the culture of the medical nursing unit work environment.

BACKGROUND

Interruptions may lead to errors in nursing work. Little is known about how the culture of the nursing work environment contributes to interruptions.

DESIGN

A micro-focused ethnographic study was conducted.

METHOD

Data collection involved extensive observation of a nursing unit, 1:1 observations of nurses and follow-up interviews with the nurses. Data were analysed from unstructured field notes and interview transcripts. The definitions of interruption and culture guided coding, categorising and identification of themes.

RESULTS

A framework was developed that describes the medical nursing unit as a complex culture full of unpredictable, nonlinear changes that affect the entire interconnected system, often in the form of an interruption. The cultural elements contributing to interruptions included (i) the value placed on excellence in patient care and meeting personal needs, (ii) the beliefs that the nurses had to do everything by themselves and that every phone call was important, (iii) the patterns of changing patients, patient transport and coordination of resources and (iv) the normative practices of communicating and adapting.

CONCLUSIONS

Interruptions are an integral part of the culture of a medical nursing unit. Uniformly decreasing interruptions may disrupt current practices, such as communication to coordinate care, that are central to nursing work. In future research, the nursing work environment must be looked at through the lens of a complex system.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE

Interventions to minimise the negative impact of interruptions must take into account the culture of the nursing as a complex adaptive system. Nurses should be educated on their own contribution to interruptions and issues addressed at a system level, rather than isolating the interruption as the central issue.

Which priority indicators to use to evaluate nursing care performance? A discussion paper

AIMS

A discussion of an optimal set of indicators that can be used on a priority basis to assess the performance of nursing care.

BACKGROUND

Recent advances in conceptualization of nursing care performance, exemplified by the Nursing Care Performance Framework, have revealed a broad universe of potentially nursing-sensitive indicators. Organizations now face the challenge of selecting, from this universe, a realistic subset of indicators that can form a balanced and common scorecard.

DESIGN

Discussion paper drawing on a systematic assessment of selected performance indicators.

DATA SOURCES

Previous works, based on systematic reviews of the literature published between 1990 - 2014, have contributed to the development of the Nursing Care Performance Framework. These works confirmed a robust set of indicators that capture the universe of content currently supported by the scientific literature and cover all major areas of nursing care performance. Building on these previous works, this study consisted in gathering the specific evidence supporting 25 selected indicators, focusing on systematic syntheses, meta-analyses and integrative reviews.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING

This study has identified a set of 12 indicators that have sufficient breadth and depth to capture the whole spectrum of nursing care and that could be implemented on a priority basis.

CONCLUSIONS

This study sets the stage for new initiatives aiming at filling current gaps in operationalization of nursing care performance. The next milestone is to set up the infrastructure required to collect data on these indicators and make effective use of them.

Using an integrated information system to reduce interruptions and the number of non-relevant contacts in the inpatient pharmacy at tertiary hospital

Patient care is provided by a multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals intended for high-quality and safe patient care. Accordingly, the team must work synergistically and communicate efficiently. In many hospitals, nursing and pharmacy communication relies mainly on telephone calls. In fact, numerous studies have reported telephone calls as a source of interruption for both pharmacy and nursing operations; therefore, the workload increases and the chance of errors raises. This report describes the implementation of an integrated information system that possibly can reduce telephone calls through providing real-time tracking capabilities and sorting prescriptions urgency, thus significantly improving traceability of all prescriptions inside pharmacy. The research design is based on a quasi-experiment using pre-post testing using the continuous improvement approach. The improvement project is performed using a six-step method. A survey was conducted in Prince Sultan Military Medical City (PSMMC) to measure the volume and types of telephone calls before and after implementation to evaluate the impact of the new system. Beforehand of the system implementation, during the two-week measurement period, all pharmacies received 4466 calls and the majority were follow-up calls. Subsequently of the integrated system rollout, there was a significant reduction (p > 0.001) in the volume of telephone calls to 2630 calls; besides, the calls nature turned out to be more professional inquiries (p > 0.001). As a result, avoidable interruptions and workload were decreased.

A combined intervention to reduce interruptions during medication preparation and double-checking: a pilot-study evaluating the impact of staff training and safety vests

AIM

The aim was to evaluate the impact of staff training and wearing safety vests as a combined intervention on interruptions during medication preparation and double-checking.

BACKGROUND

Interruptions and errors during the medication process are common and an important issue for patient safety in the hospital setting.

METHODS

We performed a pre- and post-intervention pilot-study using direct structured observation of 26 nurses preparing and double-checking 431 medication doses (225 pre-intervention and 206 post-intervention) for 36 patients (21 pre-intervention and 15 post-intervention).

RESULTS

With staff training and the introduction of safety vests, the interruption rate during medication preparation was reduced from 36.8 to 28.3 interruptions per hour and during double-checking from 27.5 to 15 interruptions per hour.

CONCLUSION

This pilot-study showed that the frequency of interruptions decreased during the critical tasks of medication preparation and double-checking after the introduction of staff training and wearing safety vests as part of a quality improvement process.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT

Nursing management should acknowledge interruptions as an important factor potentially influencing medication safety. Unnecessary interruptions can be successfully reduced by considering human and system factors and increasing both staff and nursing managers' awareness of 'interruptive communication practices' and implementing physical barriers. This is the first pilot-study specifically evaluating the impact of staff training and wearing safety vests on the reduction of interruptions during medication preparation and double-checking.

Work interruptions resiliency: toward an improved understanding of employee efficiency

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to operationalize the construct of work interruptions resiliency (WIR) and develop a measure assessing the extent to which employees report resiliency in resumption of work activities post-interruption (Study 1), and to further examine WIR’s nomological net, specifically its predictive relations with important employee-level outcomes (Study 2).

Design/methodology/approach

Study 1 utilized subject matter experts and data from 274 employees from a range of industries for scale development. Study 2 utilized 365 registered nurses from a hospital network to confirm and extend the findings from Study 1 within a relevant, dynamic job type.

Findings

Study 1 yielded a psychometrically sound measure for WIR comprised of four factors (typical, critical, external, sensory). Validity was evidenced via negative correlations with cognitive demand and Type A personality, and positive correlations with conscientiousness. Study 2 expanded WIR’s nomological net by evidencing its predictive relations with employees’ role clarity, autonomy support, role breadth self-efficacy, and evidence-based practice adoption intentions.

Research limitations/implications

This research introduces WIR and develops a measure for assessment, providing validity evidence and establishing an initial nomological net for WIR upon which further research can rely and build.

Practical implications

The work interruptions resiliency construct and measure have the potential to impact selection and training, particularly in job types wherein poor recovery from interruptions can yield detrimental consequences.

Originality/value

Work interruptions compromise productivity and result in errors. It is therefore crucial that organizations assess the extent to which employees are resistant to the detrimental effects of such disruptions (Study 1) and understand the nature of WIR’s predictive relations with important employee-level outcomes (Study 2).

Effectiveness of a 'Do not interrupt' bundled intervention to reduce interruptions during medication administration: a cluster randomised controlled feasibility study

Aim

To evaluate the effectiveness of a ‘Do not interrupt’ bundled intervention to reduce non-medication-related interruptions to nurses during medication administration.

Methods

A parallel eight cluster randomised controlled study was conducted in a major teaching hospital in Adelaide, Australia. Four wards were randomised to the intervention which comprised wearing a vest when administering medications; strategies for diverting interruptions; clinician and patient education; and reminders. Control wards were blinded to the intervention. Structured direct observations of medication administration processes were conducted. The primary outcome was non-medication-related interruptions during individual medication dose administrations. The secondary outcomes were total interruption and multitasking rates. A survey of nurses' experiences was administered.

Results

Over 8 weeks and 364.7 hours, 227 nurses were observed administering 4781 medications. At baseline, nurses experienced 57 interruptions/100 administrations, 87.9% were unrelated to the medication task being observed. Intervention wards experienced a significant reduction in non-medication-related interruptions from 50/100 administrations (95% CI 45 to 55) to 34/100 (95% CI 30 to 38). Controlling for clustering, ward type and medication route showed a significant reduction of 15 non-medication-related interruptions/100 administrations compared with control wards. A total of 88 nurses (38.8%) completed the poststudy survey. Intervention ward nurses reported that vests were time consuming, cumbersome and hot. Only 48% indicated that they would support the intervention becoming hospital policy.

Discussion

Nurses experienced a high rate of interruptions. Few were related to the medication task, demonstrating considerable scope to reduce unnecessary interruptions. While the intervention was associated with a statistically significant decline in non-medication-related interruptions, the magnitude of this reduction and its likely impact on error rates should be considered, relative to the effectiveness of alternate interventions, associated costs, likely acceptability and long-term sustainability of such interventions.

Occurrence and Duration of Interruptions During Nurses' Work in Surgical Wards: Findings From a Multicenter Observational Study

This was an observational multicenter study of 50 registered nurses, randomly selected, on 5 surgical wards in 5 Italian hospitals. There were on average 5.6 interruptions per hour. Interruptions occurred more frequently during the afternoon shift (n = 1061; 52.8%), were caused mainly by the staff members (n = 978; 48.7%) during medication administration (n = 1075; 53.5%), and were managed directly by the nurses (n = 1639; 81.6%). The average duration of an interruption was 32.7 seconds (95% confidence interval, 30.7-34.7).

Interruptions of nurses' activities and patient safety: an integrative literature review

OBJECTIVES

to identify characteristics related to the interruption of nurses in professional practice, as well as to assess the implications of interruptions for patient safety.

METHOD

integrative literature review. The following databases were searched: Pubmed/Medline, LILACS, SciELO and Cochrane Library, using the descriptors interruptions and patient safety. An initial date was not established, but the final date was December 31, 2013. A total of 29 papers met the inclusion criteria.

RESULTS

all the papers included describe interruptions as a harmful factor for patient safety. Data analysis revealed three relevant categories: characteristics of interruptions, implications for patient safety, and interventions to minimize interruptions.

CONCLUSION

interruptions favor the occurrence of errors in the health field. Therefore, there is a need for further studies to understand such a phenomenon and its effects on clinical practice.