title: Nurses' perceptions of multitasking in the emergency department: effective, fun and unproblematic (at least for me) – a qualitative study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The aim was to understand how multitasking is experienced by registered nurses and how it relates to their everyday practice in the emergency department.
  
  
  METHODS
  Interviews with open-ended questions were conducted with registered nurses (n = 9) working in one of two included emergency departments in Sweden. Data were analyzed using Schilling's structured model for qualitative content analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Three core concepts related to multitasking emerged from the interviews: 'multitasking - an attractive prerequisite for ED care'; 'multitasking implies efficiency' and 'multitasking is not stressful'. From these core concepts an additional theme emerged: '… and does not cause errors – at least for me', related to patient safety.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study shows how the patient load and the unreflected multitasking that follows relate to nurses' perceived efficiency and job satisfaction. It also shows that the relationship between multitasking and errors is perceived to be mediated by whom the actor is, and his or her level of experience. Findings from this study add value to the discourse on multitasking and the emergency department context, as few studies go beyond examining the quantitative aspect of interruptions and multitasking and how it is experienced by the staff in their everyday practice.
authors: Department of Learning, Informatics, Management and Ethics (LIME), Medical Management Center (MMC), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. Electronic address: helena.hvitfeldt.forsberg@ki.se.
authors: Helena Hvitfeldt
authors: HH
authors: Forsberg
authors: Department of Medical Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden; Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden; Department of Emergency Care, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden; School of Nursing, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia.
authors: Åsa
authors: Å
authors: Muntlin Athlin
authors: Department of Learning, Informatics, Management and Ethics (LIME), Medical Management Center (MMC), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors: Ulrica
authors: U
authors: von Thiele Schwarz
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D016529:Emergency Nursing / Q000379:methods*; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010465:Perception; D036301:Qualitative Research; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D013548:Sweden; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis
keywords: Emergency department; Interruptions; Multitasking; Nursing; Patient care; Patient safety; Polychronicity; Registered nurse