title: Workflow interruptions, social stressors from supervisor(s) and attention failure in surgery personnel.
abstract: Workflow interruptions and social stressors among surgery personnel may cause attention failure at work that may increase rumination about work issues during leisure time. The test of these assumptions should contribute to the understanding of exhaustion in surgery personnel and patient safety. Workflow interruptions and supervisor-related social stressors were tested to predict attention failure that predicts work-related rumination during leisure time. One hundred ninety-four theatre nurses, anaesthetists and surgeons from a Swiss University hospital participated in a cross-sectional survey. The participation rate was 58%. Structural equation modelling confirmed both indirect paths from workflow interruptions and social stressors via attention failure on rumination (both p<0.05). An alternative model, assuming the reversed indirect causation-from attention failure via workflow interruptions and social stressors on rumination-could not be empirically supported. Workflow interruptions and social stressors at work are likely to trigger attention failure in surgery personnel. Work redesign and team intervention could help surgery personnel to maintain a high level of quality and patient safety and detach from work related issues to recover during leisure time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Work and Organizational Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.forename: Achim
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Elfering
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000072077:Anesthetists / Q000523:psychology*; D001288:Attention; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009726:Nurses / Q000523:psychology*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*; D066231:Surgeons / Q000523:psychology*; D013557:Switzerland; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D057188:Workflow; D017132:Workplace / Q000523:psychology