Interruptions and miscommunications in surgery: an observational study

Brigid M Gillespie; Wendy Chaboyer; Nicole Fairweather

doi:10.1016/j.aorn.2012.02.012

Interruptions and miscommunications in surgery: an observational study

AORN J. 2012 May;95(5):576-90. doi: 10.1016/j.aorn.2012.02.012.

Authors

Brigid M Gillespie¹, Wendy Chaboyer, Nicole Fairweather

Affiliation

¹ NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Nursing Interventions for Hospitalized Patients, Griffith Institute of Health, Griffith University, Gold Coast Campus, Queensland, Australia.

PMID: 22541769
DOI: 10.1016/j.aorn.2012.02.012

Abstract

In surgery, as much as 30% of procedure-specific information may be lost as a result of miscommunication. We assessed the relationship between interruptions, team familiarity, and miscommunications across a purposive sample of 160 surgical procedures in 10 specialties during a six-month period. Descriptive analysis was used to quantify interruptions in respect to the source (ie, conversational, procedural) and type of miscommunication (ie, audience, purpose, occasion, content, experience). Results revealed an inverse correlation between the length of time that teams had worked together and the number of miscommunications in surgery (τ = -.33, P < .01). There was a positive correlation between the number of intraoperative interruptions and the number of miscommunications (τ = .30, P < .01). These results may help to inform the development of evidence-based interventions designed to mitigate the effects of miscommunications in surgery.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Australia
Communication*
General Surgery / organization & administration*
Humans
Observation
Operating Rooms / organization & administration*
Patient Care Team / organization & administration*
Patient Safety / standards*
Qualitative Research
Surgical Procedures, Operative