title: The Australian Incident Monitoring Study in Intensive Care: AIMS-ICU. The development and evaluation of an incident reporting system in intensive care.
abstract: Intensive care units are complex, dynamic patient management environments. Incidents and accidents can be caused by human error, by problems inherent in complex systems, or by a combination of these. Study objectives were to develop and evaluate an incident reporting system. A report form was designed eliciting a description of the incident, contextual information and contributing factors. Staff group sessions using open-ended questions, observations in the workplace and a review of earlier narratives were used to develop the report form. Three intensive care units participated in a two-month evaluation study. Feedback questionnaires were used to assess staff attitudes and understanding, project design and organization. These demonstrated a positive attitude and good understanding by more than 90% participants. Errors in communication, technique, problem recognition and charting were the predisposing factors most commonly chosen in the 128 incidents reported. It was concluded that incident monitoring may be a suitable technique for improving patient safety in intensive care.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care, John Hunter Hospital, Newcastle, NSW.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Beckmann
authors.forename: L F
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: West
authors.forename: G J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Groombridge
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Baldwin
authors.forename: G K
authors.initials: GK
authors.lastname: Hart
authors.forename: D G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Clayton
authors.forename: R K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Webb
authors.forename: W B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Runciman
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001315:Australia; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D012308:Risk Management / Q000379:methods*; D012449:Safety; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires