RESEARCH FINDINGS AND PRODUCTS

Surveys:

For information about our surveys, please click here.

Medical Device Usability and Safety Assessment Tools (MEDUSA)
The MEDUSA guidelines are designed for assessing the usability and safety of medical devices during the device procurement process. They enable purchasing team committee members to objectively assess and compare medical device usability and safety in an easy and efficient manner. We have begun to assess the guidelines using member hospitals of the FDA's MedSun (http://www.medsun.net) project. We are also seeking additional hospitals who wish to participate in the assessment. For details of the guidelines see the presentation below. Hospitals who are interested in using the guidelines or participating may contact Dr. Todd R. Johnson at todd.r.johnson@uth.tmc.edu

MEDUSA Presentation

Incident reporting systems:

http://TexasHasp.org
A cooperative incident reporting pilot project between the Healthcare Alliance Safety Partnership and the Texas Board of Nursing Examiners.

https://www.utccrs.org/ccrs

Manuscripts, books, and technical reports:

Tang Z, Zhang J, Thomas EJ, Brixey J, Johnson TR. Incorporating Usability Evaluation in Medical Device Purchasing for Improved Patient Safety. Biomedical Instrumentation & Technology 2007 (in press).

Thomas M, Simmons D, Graves K, Martin S. Practice/Regulation Partnerships: The Pathway to Increased Safety in Nursing Practice, Healthcare Systems and Patient Care. Nurse Leader, June:50-53, 2007. Nurse Leader HASP overview.pdf

Beyea S, Simmons D, Hicks R. Caution: Tubing misconnections can be deadly. AORN, 85(3):633-635, 2007.

Singh H, Thomas EJ, Khan MM, Petersen LA. Identifying diagnostic errors in primary care using an electronic screening algorithm. Arch Intern Med 2007; 167:302-308. http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/167/3/302

Sexton JB, Holzmueller CG, Pronovost PJ, Thomas EJ, McFerran S., Nunes J, Thompson DA, Knight AP, Penning DH, Fox HE. Variation in Caregiver Perceptions of Teamwork Climate in Labor and Delivery Units. J Perinatol 2006; 26:463-470.

Johnson TR, Zhang J, Patel VL, Keselman A, Tang X, Brixley JJ, Paige D, Turley JP. Advances in Patient Safety: From Research to Implementation. Volume 1. Research Findings, Technology: The role of patient safety in the device purchasing process. http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/advances

Martin S, Etchegaray J, Simmons D, Belt WT, Clark K. Advances in Patient Safety: From Research to Implementation. Volume 2. Concepts and Methodology, Surveillance: Development and implementation of the University of Texas Close Call Reporting System. http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/advances

Harper M, Helmreich R. Advances in Patient Safety: From Research to Implementation. Volume 3. Implementation Issues, Surveillance: Identifying barriers to the success of a reporting system. http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/advances

Sexton JB, Makary MA, Tersigni AR, Pryor D, Hendrich A, Thomas EJ, Holzmueller CG, Knight AP, Wu Y, Pronovost PJ. Teamwork in the Operating Room. Frontline perspectives among hospitals and operating room personnel. Anesthesiology 105:877-84, 2006. Sexton_Teamwork_OR2006

Tamuz M, Thomas EJ. Classifying and interpreting threats to patient safety in hospitals: insights from aviation. Journal of Organizational Behavior 27, 919-940, 2006. Tamuz_Thomas2006

Sexton JB, Helmreich RL, Neilands TB, Rowan K, Vella K, Boyden J, Roberts PR, Thomas EJ. The Safety Attitudes Questionnaire: Psychometric Properties, Benchmarking Data, and Emerging Research. BMC Health Services Research 2006;6:44. http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6963/6/44

Johnson TR, Tang X, Graham M, Brixey J, Turley JP, Zhang J, et al. Attitudes toward medical device use errors and error prevention. Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety. (In Review)

Tamuz M and Harrison MI. Improving Patient Safety in Hospitals: Contributions of High Reliability Theory and Normal Accident Theory. Health Services Research. (In Press, 2006)

Singh H, Petersen LA, Thomas EJ. Understanding diagnostic errors in medicine: a lesson from aviation. Quality and Safety in Healthcare 2006; 15;159-164. http://qhc.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/abstract/15/3/159

Turley JP, Johnson TR, Paige DL, Zhang J, and Brixey JJ. Operating Manual-Based Usability Evaluation of Medical Devices: An Effective Patient Safety Screening Method. Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety, 32(4), 214-220. (In Press, 2006)

Thomas EJ, Moore FA. The missing tip. AHRQ Web M&M, November, 2003.

The effect of executive walk rounds on nurse safety climate attitudes: A randomized trial of clinical units

Translating Teamwork Behaviors from Aviation to Healthcare: Development of The University of Texas Behavioral Markers for Neonatal Resuscitation

Institutional decision making to select patient care devices: identifying venues to promote patient safety

Using usability heuristics to evaluate patient safety of medical devices

Team training and resource management in healthcare: current issues and future directions

Safety Climate Technical Report 0303

The Better the Team, the Safer the World

Working Together in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: Provider Perspectives

Safety Climate Test Retest Technical Report

Conference summaries and presentations:

Tools and Methods for Monitoring Patient Safety: The Role of Medical Record Review

Developing a Safety Culture: The Challenges of Medicine

Effecting Change: From Attitudes to Behavior Outcomes