Human factors in emergency care

Abstract

The field of human factors engineering (HFE), also known as ergonomics, is concerned with understanding the capabilities and characteristics of humans and applying this knowledge to improve the tools, machines, and systems with which humans interact. 1 HFE seeks to improve human performance and safety by focusing on the cognitive and physical capabilities of the "user" as they operate in their work environment, and using this information to inform system design. Knowledge of cognitive capabilities includes understanding attention processes, memory demands, perception, information processing, and decision-making. Physical capabilities include understanding the anatomy, physiology, and biomechanics of the user. Given the focus on both cognitive and physical capabilities, HFE is a multidisciplinary field that draws from psychology, engineering, and anthropometry.This chapter reviews common methods used in HFE and the application of HFE to health care with a focus on emergency medicine. Specific topics covered include workflow, overcrowding, teamwork, health information technology, task interruptions, and clinical decision-making. While HFE has an extensive history in domains such as aviation and nuclear energy, the application of HFE in health care is still in its early stages.

Clinical incidents in the emergency department: is there an association with emergency nursing shift patterns? A retrospective observational study

“…In the ED, CI analysis and management is complex due to the relationship and interaction between the environment, multidisciplinary healthcare team and individual patient factors, such as overcrowding, increased LOS in ED, high workloads and roster schedules worked by staff. 43 The state government of Queensland (Queensland Health) adopted the methodology of RCA in CI analysis focusing on the contributing factors of ‘task, equipment, work environment, patient, healthcare team and organisational factors’ 35 p. 15); similar to the SEIPS model.…”