“I Am Administering Medication—Please Do Not Interrupt Me”: Red Tabards Preventing Interruptions as Perceived by Surgical Patients

Conclusions
On the basis of the findings that emerged, the adoption of the tabards should be evaluated considering the benefits already documented, and the potential negative effects that emerged on patients, which may be influenced by cultural and linguistic aspects. Wearing the tabard with the message reported on the back, directed to the staff and not the patients, may have less negative effects on patients; in addition, using a different color not to alarm the patients may be useful. In addition, comparing the red tabard effects with other strategies introduced to deal with avoidable interruptions (e.g., “no interruption zone”) to gain a comprehensive picture regarding benefits/harm is also important.

Source: Journal of Patient Safety - February 16, 2019 Category: Health Management Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research