A Quarter of Surgical Errors Linked to Equipment, Technology
23July2013
According to new research, equipment or technology-related failures cause about one in every four operating room errors.
It is clear from the data published online in the medical journal BMJ Quality & Safety that equipment problems are a substantial patient safety issue. The researchers from Imperial College London reviewed 28 published studies of operating room errors and observed equipment failures and technology issues accounted for approximately 24 percent of the total errors. They further noted that equipment issues were cited in approximately 15 percent of the malpractice claims. Some procedures, such as cardiac surgeries, are highly reliant on the use of complex technology, and not surprisingly, these procedures also have more equipment problems.
Most equipment failures in the operating room occur because of improper configuration of the device, lack of availability of the device, or outright device malfunction, the researchers said. The most common factor was improper configuration of the device, which accounted for approximately 44% of the cases in which equipment-related failures contributed to surgical error.
The researchers said that the error rates varied widely depending on the type of operation. Operations that rely more heavily on technology tended to show higher equipment error rates. They concluded that technological advances have improved surgery but may also make surgery more complicated and increase the likelihood of error from equipment failure.
Doctors and other healthcare providers can take steps to avoid malfunctions or failures related to technology. The researchers said a pre-operation checklist that focuses on the devices, systems, and machines used in the operating room can help reduce the risk of equipment errors by as much as half.
The pre-surgical checklist, which is already in place in so many hospitals, must be modified to include more thorough checks of all devices before surgery.
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