title: [Alarms of medical-technical equipment in the surgical intensive care unit. A prospective study].
abstract: To test the need for a graded system of alarms on ICU we examined this aspect of present management by recording the number of devices and alarm-releasing facilities, the interpretation of alarms and type of response of the nursing staff. The data were recorded on multiphase basis at the operative ICU of a university hospital. The mean number of devices per patient was 4.3 and per room 11.5. The mean interval between 2 alarms was 5 min 30 s. In more than 50 per cent the first reaction of the staff was alarm-related. We conclude that the number of alarm signals should be reduced and unique signals used for each group of medical devices.
authors.affiliation: Universitätsklinik für Anästhesiologie, Universität Ulm.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Deller
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schühle
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Konrad
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kilian
mesh_terms: D004868:Equipment Failure; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000295:instrumentation*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care
vernacular_title: Alarme durch medizinisch-technische Geräte auf der operativen Intensivstation. Eine prospektive Studie.