Adverse physiological events occur frequently in critically ill patients and often lead to catastrophic outcomes. Technological improvements in monitoring displays have the potential to enhance nursing performance and patient outcomes by allowing nurses to better visualize the hemodynamic status of their patients. This study will explore the application of graphical display technology in the critical care environment. The goal is to determine whether a new graphical display for hemodynamic monitoring improves critical care nurses' ability to detect, identify, and manage adverse physiological events in critically ill patients. Bioengineering and human factors research suggests that presenting complex information graphically is more intuitive than waveform or numerical representation. Phase 1 of this research will involve adapting a graphical cardiovascular display that was originally designed for use in operating rooms. Display adaptation to critical care nursing will be an iterative process, guided by an established design refinement protocol. Phase 2 will evaluate the effects of this display on critical care nurses' ability to detect changes in hemodynamic status, correctly identify adverse physiologic events, and initiate appropriate nursing interventions. Using a full-scale patient simulator, performance and cognitive workload for nurses using the adapted graphical display will be compared to those using a traditional monitoring display.
| Doig, Alexa K; Albert, Robert W; Syroid, Noah D et al. (2011) Graphical arterial blood gas visualization tool supports rapid and accurate data interpretation. Comput Inform Nurs 29:TC53-60 |
| Doig, Alexa K; Drews, Frank A; Keefe, Maureen R (2011) Informing the design of hemodynamic monitoring displays. Comput Inform Nurs 29:706-13 |
