Anaesthesia and intensive care
-
To measure and compare the response times to audibly or visually presented alarms in the operating theatre. ⋯ The ability of anaesthetists to appreciate changes in patient physiology may be limited by delays in noticing information presented by monitors. The rapid response to the vast majority of alarms indicates a high level of vigilance among the anaesthetists studied. However, this study suggests that it is safer to rely on audible rather than visual alarms when time-critical information such as oxygenation, heart beat and ventilator disconnection is concerned. Visual alarms would appear to be more appropriate for conveying less urgent information.