Standardised colour-coded compartmentalised syringe trays improve anaesthetic medication visual search and mitigate cognitive load (10 January 2023)

Summary

This study by a team at the University of Derby in the British Journal of Anaesthesia used experimental psychology methods to explore the potential benefits of colour-coded compartmentalised trays compared with conventional trays in a visual search task. 

The authors found that errors were detected faster when presented in the colour-coded compartmentalised trays than in conventional trays, a finding that was replicated for correct responses for error-absent trays. Overall, colour-coded compartmentalised trays were associated with significant performance improvements when compared with conventional trays.

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