AUDIBLE MONITOR ALARM: FRIEND OR FOE?

Background: The increase in variety of equipment available for use in the intensive care unit and theatre has brought about the need to assess the role played by audible alarm during patient care. To assess the effects of audible monitor alarm on theatre and ICU personnel. Study design: Questionnaire designed to assess the effects of audible alarms on attention, workload and working memory were administered to theatre and ICU personnel. Results: Most respondents feel that audible alarm assist their attention; however 30 % of surgeons think otherwise. 20 % of the respondents feel that their workload is unnecessarily increased by audible alarm; physician anaesthetists make up a quarter of this group. When asked about the need to adjust the monitor alarms, about 60 % opined they adjust it to reduce the noise, while the others think it should only be adjusted to support identification of deranged parameters. About 10 % of the respondents feel their working memory is affected by the audible alarm; most people in this group are physician anaesthetists. Conclusions: Though audible monitor alarm is supporting attention of the user; it was incriminated as a cause of distractions, increase in workload and impairment of working memory. There is need to balance those advantages of the alarm system with measures to reduce the complaints of distraction by theatre users. This will make audible alarm in monitors more of a friend than a foe