MGH death spurs review of patient monitors.

Newspaper/Magazine Article

MGH death spurs review of patient monitors.

March 3, 2010

Kowalczyk L. Boston Globe. February 21, 2010.

View more articles from the same authors.

This news account discusses a patient death after a heart monitor alarm was inadvertently turned off. Hospital and device safety experts weigh in on strategies to prevent these types of errors.

Free full text

Related Resources From the Same Author(s)

'Alarm fatigue’ a factor in 2nd death.

October 5, 2011

5 cataract surgeries, 5 people blinded: what went wrong?

August 24, 2016

Report faults Children's Hospital for medication errors.

June 6, 2018

Maternal deaths at MetroWest hospital prompt state probes.

August 9, 2017

Fires during surgeries a bigger risk than thought.

November 21, 2007

Patient alarms often unheard, unheeded.

February 23, 2011

Brigham and Women's airing medical mistakes.

April 24, 2013

Surgical error at Tufts prompts widespread changes.

September 10, 2014

MGH halts a pediatric program: Heart surgeries on hold after errors.

April 29, 2009

Beth Israel cited for residents' long hours—facing review for accreditation.

September 24, 2008

Hospitals try to calm doctors' outbursts: medical road rage affecting patient safety, group says.

August 27, 2008

Hospitals try to break a deadly 'code.'

December 14, 2005

Beth Israel cited for improving obstetrics care.

April 11, 2007

Many Mass. hospitals will pay for errors.

October 3, 2007

Surgical mistakes persist in Bay State: still a tiny fraction of total procedures.

November 7, 2007

Hospitals cutting nurses' long shifts.

September 28, 2005

Hospitals study when to apologize to patients.

August 3, 2005

VA hospitals flooded with complaints about care.

September 27, 2017

Prescription drug overload: critics fighting to curb an epidemic of medication side effects.

January 29, 2020

Hospital trustees shift their focus to medical safety.

March 14, 2007

Clash in the name of care.

November 4, 2015

Surgeons must tell patients of double-booked surgeries, new guidelines say.

April 27, 2016

Doctor’s orders killed cancer patient: Dana-Farber admits drug overdose caused death of Globe columnist, damage to second woman.

March 27, 2005

Hospitals tally their avoidable mistakes.

August 5, 2009

Incentives push more doctors to e-prescribe.

February 4, 2009

Five hospitals release data on inspections.

May 2, 2007

Communication for Nurses: How to Prevent Harmful Events and Promote Patient Safety.

May 12, 2010

How-to Guide: Multidisciplinary Rounds.

March 10, 2010

Whistle-blowing nurse is acquitted in Texas.

February 24, 2010

Unmet Needs: Teaching Physicians to Provide Safe Patient Care.

March 17, 2010

Discharge missteps can send seniors back to hospital.

March 3, 2010

A clinical reminder about the safe use of insulin vials.

March 6, 2013

Critical Incident Reviews, Significant Adverse Event Reports and Action Plans.

April 25, 2012

Maalox Total Relief and Maalox Liquid Products: Medication Use Errors.

March 3, 2010

Shining a glaring light on surgery: technology that records every move aims to improve safety.

January 24, 2024

Assessment of DoD Wounded Warrior Matters: Managing Risks of Multiple Medications.

March 5, 2014

Nurses seek to reduce long hours and fatigue.

February 11, 2015

Catching deadly drug mistakes.

January 27, 2010

Aftercare tips for patients checking out of the hospital.

June 30, 2010

Working Knowledge: How Organizations Manage What They Know.

September 14, 2005

The Wrong Medicine: Quaid on Medical Mistakes

March 26, 2008

Scalia's death and the value of autopsy: a teachable moment.

April 6, 2016

Patient safety in the operating room.

September 21, 2023

Dermatology faces a reckoning: lack of darker skin in textbooks and journals harms care for patients of color.

August 5, 2020

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: Patient Experiences with CRPs.

October 21, 2021 - October 21, 2021

Is incivility an underlying threat to safety in obstetrics?

February 18, 2015

Learning to Use Patient Stories.

December 8, 2010

Advancing Effective Communication, Cultural Competence, and Patient- and Family-Centered Care: A Roadmap for Hospitals.

August 25, 2010

Safe Practices for Better Healthcare: 2010 Update.

April 21, 2010

HealthGrades Seventh Annual Patient Safety in American Hospitals Study.

April 7, 2010

The Power of Safety: State Reporting Provides Lessons in Reducing Harm, Improving Care.

July 7, 2010

Annual Benchmarking Report: Malpractice Risks in Surgery.

June 9, 2010

The pain of wrong site surgery.

July 6, 2011

Sophisticated digital aids could help determine what ails you.

August 2, 2017

Survey by Ohio regulator shows stress, fatigue among pharmacists at chain stores.

May 5, 2021

Healthcare Safety Investigations Conference 2022.

August 3, 2022

VA pauses $16B Oracle Cerner EHR deployments indefinitely to address error-ridden early rollout.

May 3, 2023

Tenfold errors can lead to tragedy.

September 6, 2006

"Near injury" alters procedures at Virginia Mason.

June 1, 2005

Cedars-Sinai doctors cling to pen and paper: transition to electronic medical records proves difficult.

April 3, 2005

Challenges with requiring five characters during ADC drug searches via override.

November 3, 2021

Improving America's Hospitals: The Joint Commission's Annual Report on Quality and Safety 2010.

September 29, 2010

Medical malpractice: the fear factor.

September 29, 2010

Warning of missed patient safety alerts in NHS.

September 1, 2010

Medication mix-ups.

March 17, 2010

Improving America's Hospitals: The Joint Commission's Annual Report on Quality and Safety 2009.

January 27, 2010

Patient Safety Culture Report: Focusing on Indicators.

July 21, 2010

Risky business: James Bagian—NASA astronaut turned patient safety expert—on being wrong.

July 14, 2010

Medication mistake kills toddler at hospital-run care facility.

June 9, 2010

Preventing infections: how Portland hospitals compare.

May 19, 2010

Computerized medication order errors studied.

May 5, 2010

In redesigned room, hospital patients may feel better already.

September 3, 2014

Drugmakers are abandoning cheap generics, and now US cancer patients can’t get meds.

July 5, 2023

PC standards for maternal safety.

September 11, 2019

Hospitals Can Take Key Steps to Improve Safe Use of Digital Systems.

August 12, 2020

Achieving Strong Teamwork Practices in Hospital Labor and Delivery Units.

December 15, 2010

Patient Deaths at Arbour Health Systems—Westwood Lodge Hospital and Pembroke Hospital.

March 21, 2018

ISMP's Guidelines for Standard Order Sets.

March 31, 2010

Improving patient care through improved caregiver support.

September 13, 2017

The Rebecca O'Malley Report.

May 21, 2008

Safe Surgery Guide.

November 24, 2010

Improving Communication During Transitions of Care.

November 17, 2010

Healthcare 411.

October 13, 2010

Failure Mode and Effects Analysis in Health Care: Proactive Risk Reduction, Third Edition.

September 22, 2010

Chasing Zero: Winning the War on Healthcare Harm.

April 28, 2010

Patient Safety in the Intensive Care Unit.

March 10, 2010

Patient safety: what can medicine learn from aviation?

June 23, 2010

National Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy.

June 16, 2010

8 ways to prevent medication errors in kids.

May 12, 2010

The Sunday story: when hospitals don't say sorry.

January 31, 2024

Building a case for medication reconciliation.

May 3, 2006

Preventing Medication Errors: A $21 Billion Opportunity.

February 16, 2011

Toward Improving the Outcome of Pregnancy: Enhancing Perinatal Health Through Quality, Safety and Performance Initiatives (TIOP III).

December 22, 2010

Hand Hygiene Project: Best Practices from Hospitals Participating in the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare Project.

December 8, 2010

The fading art of the physical exam.

September 29, 2010

The First Annual HealthGrades Pediatric Patient Safety in American Hospitals Study.

August 25, 2010

Patient Safety, 2nd edition.

August 4, 2010

The Selective Attention Task.

January 16, 2008

Sorry Works! 2.0: Disclosure, Apology, and Relationships Prevent Medical Malpractice Claims.

March 12, 2008

Another tragic parenteral nutrition compounding error.

May 11, 2011

Related Resources

Risks to Medication Delivery Using Ambulatory Infusion Pumps – Design and Usability in Inpatient Settings.

February 14, 2024

Common ECG interpretation software mistakes.

January 10, 2024

Interview

In Conversation with... Susan McGrath, PhD and George Blike, MD about Surveillance Monitoring

April 26, 2023

Perspective

Surveillance Monitoring to Improve Patient Safety in Acute Hospital Care Units

April 26, 2023

Perspectives on Safety

Annual Perspective

Technology as a Tool for Improving Patient Safety

March 29, 2023

Patient Safety Innovations

Enhancing Support for Patients’ Social Needs to Reduce Hospital Readmissions and Improve Health Outcomes

March 29, 2023

Patient Safety Innovations

The I-READI Quality and Safety Framework: Strong Communications Channels and Effective Practices to Rapidly Update and Implement Clinical Protocols During a Time of Crisis

March 15, 2023

Potential for medication overdose with ENFit low dose tip syringe: FDA Safety Communication.

October 20, 2021

Letter to Health Care Providers: Safe Use of Surgical Staplers and Staples.

October 7, 2021

Reporting of death in US Food and Drug Administration medical device adverse event reports in categories other than death.

August 11, 2021

Leaving a discontinued FentaNYL infusion attached to the patient leads to a tragic error

July 14, 2021

A night in the hospital, from both ends of the stethoscope.

January 20, 2021

Patient safety incidents in advance care planning for serious illness: a mixed-methods analysis

October 9, 2019

FDA to end program that hid millions of reports on faulty medical devices.

May 29, 2019

The computerized ECG: friend and foe.

April 10, 2019

Insulin pumps have most reported problems in FDA database.

December 5, 2018

Smart pump custom concentrations without hard "low concentration" alerts can lead to patient harm.

June 20, 2018

How redesigning the abrasive alarms of hospital soundscapes can save lives.

April 12, 2017

Medical gas containers and closures; current good manufacturing practice requirements.

November 18, 2016

Misdiagnoses: a hidden risk of genetic testing.

November 16, 2016

More than half a million heart surgery patients at risk of a dangerous infection.

October 26, 2016

Raising an alarm, doctors fight to yank hospital ICUs into the modern era.

September 21, 2016

Screen flashes and pop-up reminders: 'alert fatigue' spreads through medicine.

June 29, 2016

At the hospital, better responses to those beeping alarms.

January 13, 2016

Making healthcare safer by understanding, designing and buying better IT.

July 22, 2015

The absence of a drug–disease interaction alert leads to a child's death.

June 3, 2015

Preventing high-alert medication errors in hospital patients.

May 27, 2015

Hospital tones down alarms to reduce fatigue, enhance safety.

February 18, 2015

The surprising way to stay safe in the hospital.

January 14, 2015

Alarm management: first things first: using reliable data to eliminate unnecessary alarms.

December 10, 2014

See More About The Topic

Medical Device Design