Caution: Line-of-Sight in ICU Designs

<p>It has been estimated that by the end of 2015, the U.S. will spend approximately $200 billion in new healthcare facilities construction. Infection prevention, patient and family satisfaction, and technologies influence contemporary designs of critical care units. All of these impacts have created larger patient care units, with a majority of single patient rooms. These larger spaces have created challenges for the clinicians to maintain the line-of-sight. The line-of-sight is one tool clinicians often use to maintain patient safety. </p> <p>Since the seminal publication by the Institute of Medicine in 1999, patient safety concerns have escalated after revealing numerous deaths in U.S. hospitals occur due to error. Nurses are in the forefront for patient safety, especially in the hospital setting, and are responsible for 24/7 assessments, monitoring, surveillance, and care. The one safety tool, the line-of-sight, if obstructed could have an impact on patient safety, and often, it is the environment that creates the obstructions.</p> <p>In the design phase, before construction begins in any new critical care unit, the line-of-sight should be considered for optimal surveillance and safety. Coupling the line-of-sight with the field of human factors engineering may be the next major influence to subsequent generations of healthcare construction. </p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Level thesis:degree_level

Project

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Nursing

Year dc:date.available

2015

Author dc:creator

• Bartos, Diane C

Contributors dc:contributor

• Marjorie Barter, EdD, RN, CNL, CENP
• Juli Maxworthy, DNP, MSN, MBA, RN, CNL, CPHQ, CPPS, CHSE
• Leanne Hunstock, DNP, MBA, NEA-BC

• line-of-sight
• patient safety
• critical care designs
• human factors
• Critical Care Nursing
• Environmental Design
• Interior Architecture
• Nursing Administration

Repository record dc:identifier

https://repository.usfca.edu/dnp/64

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.usfca.edu:dnp-1075