System Factors Affecting Patient Safety in the OR: An Analysis of Safety Threats and Resiliency.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study is to determine the characteristics and frequency of intraoperative safety threats and resilience supports using a human factors measurement tool.

BACKGROUND

Human factors analysis can provide insight into how system elements contribute to intraoperative adverse events. Empiric evidence on safety threats and resilience in surgical practice is lacking.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study of 24 patients undergoing elective laparoscopic general surgery at a single center in the Netherlands from May to November, 2017 was conducted. Video, audio, and patient physiologic data from all included procedures were obtained through a multichannel synchronized recording device. Trained analysts reviewed the recordings and coded safety threats and resilience supports. The codes were categorized into 1 of 6 categories (person, task, tools and technology, physical environment, organization, and external environment).

RESULTS

A median of 14 safety threats [interquartile range (IQR) 11-16] and 12 resilience supports (IQR 11-16) were identified per case. Most safety threat codes (median 9, IQR 7-12) and resilience support codes (median 10, IQR 7-12) were classified in the person category. The organization category contained a median of 2 (IQR 1-2) safety threat codes and 2 (IQR 2-3) resilience support codes per case. The tools and technology category contributed a small number of safety threats (median 1 per case, IQR 0-1), but rarely provided resilience support.

CONCLUSIONS

Through a detailed human factors analysis of elective laparoscopic general surgery cases, this study provided a quantitative analysis of the existing safety threats and resilience supports in a modern endoscopic operating room.