Design for survival: How to build a better trauma bay (7 October 2021)

Summary

This article by Lauren McGIll in The Walrus looks at how design changes to the trauma bay at St Michael's Hospital in Toronto are saving lives. Lack of intentional design in hospitals, new technologies and a culture that celebrates adaptability all contribute to what the author describes as "a piecemeal approach" to emergency medicine workspaces. The outcome of this is ultimately higher mortality rates as staff do not have an optimum working environment.

The article describes a research project set up in 2015 by doctors Christopher Hicks and Andrew Petrosoniak, which aimed to identify and remove latent hazards and obstacles that cost trauma staff time in emergency situations. They redesigned the trauma bay at St Michael's hospital as a result of their findings, and early reports are that dramatic rescues have been possible thanks to the new layout.

Petrosoniak says, “You cannot remove the stress of someone dying in front of you, but we can remove the stress of not being able to find equipment.”

Further reading

Trauma Resuscitation Using in situ Simulation Team Training (TRUST) study: latent safety threat evaluation using framework analysis and video review (BMJ Quality & Safety)

Study protocol for a framework analysis using video review to identify latent safety threats: trauma resuscitation using in situ simulation team training (TRUST) (BMJ Open)

Stress Testing the Resuscitation Room: Latent Threats to Patient Safety Identified During Interprofessional In Situ Simulation in a Canadian Academic Emergency Department (AEM Education and Training)

Health professionals' experience of teamwork education in acute hospital settings: a systematic review of qualitative literature (JBI Evidence Synthesis)