Use Of Cognitive Aids Research Articles

Use of Cognitive Aids: Results from a National Survey among Anaesthesia Providers in France and Canada.

Introduction The use of cognitive aids (CAs) during critical events is thought to be useful. However, whether CAs are known and used by French and Canadian anaesthesia providers is not clear. Methods A survey was emailed to French and Canadian anaesthesia providers in 2017 through their respective national societies. It consisted of 23 questions about the participants' demographics and their knowledge, use, and impact of CAs. A second survey was sent to French simulation centres. Results 912 responses were recorded in France and 278 in Canada (overall response rate: 7% and 11%, respectively). Among the respondents, 700/899 in France (78%) versus 249/273 (91%) in Canada were familiar with the concept of cognitive dysfunction during a crisis and 501/893 (56%) in France versus 250/271 (92%) in Canada knew the concept of CAs. Amongst those respondents who knew about CAs, 189/492 (38%) in France versus 108/244 (44%) in Canada stated that they had already used a CA in real life and 225/493 (45%) in France versus 126/245 (51%) in Canada had received training in their use. Simulation was the principal modality for training in 150/225 (67%) of cases in France versus 47/126 (37%) in Canada. Among the 28/50 French simulation centres which responded (2018 January), 27 organised sessions in anaesthesia and 22 used CAs. Conclusion CAs were better known in Canada than in France, but their actual use in real life was low in both countries. Simulation appears to play a potentially important role training anaesthesia providers in the use of CAs.

Cognitive Aids in Obstetric Units: Design, Implementation, and Use.

Obstetrics has unique considerations for high stakes and dynamic clinical care of ≥2 patients. Obstetric crisis situations require efficient and coordinated responses from the entire multidisciplinary team. Actions that teams perform, or omit, can strongly impact peripartum and perinatal outcomes. Cognitive aids are tools that aim to improve patient safety, efficiency in health care management, and patient outcomes. However, they are intended to be combined with clinician judgment and training, not as absolute or exhaustive standards of care for patient management. There is simulation-based evidence showing efficacy of cognitive aids for enhancing appropriate team management during crises, especially with a reader role, with growing literature supporting use in obstetric and nonobstetric clinical settings when combined with local customization and implementation efforts. The purpose of this article is to summarize current understanding and available resources for cognitive aid design, implementation, and use in obstetrics and to highlight existing gaps that can stimulate further enhancement in this field.

The timing of cognitive aid access during simulated pediatric intraoperative critical events.

Many cognitive aids are formatted in a step-by-step fashion with the intent that the aid will be accessed at the beginning of a critical event and that key behaviors will be performed in sequence. We hypothesized that, during simulated pediatric intraoperative critical events, anesthesia clinicians may not use cognitive aids immediately after the onset of a critical event but instead access the aid only after first performing several key behaviors. This manuscript is a re-analysis of previously published simulation data. The original study involved 89 clinicians participating in 143 pediatric intraoperative events divided into 6 types: arrhythmia, venous air embolus, hypoxemia, malignant hyperthermia, hypotension, and supraventricular tachycardia. For each trial involving cognitive aid use, we measured the time from event trigger to cognitive aid use, and the number and type of key behaviors performed by simulation participants prior to cognitive aid access. Cognitive aid use was sought in 66 of 93 trials where it was available. Sufficient data for this analysis were available in 65 trials. The average time from event trigger to first cognitive aid use was 258seconds. In 62/65 trials (95%), the cognitive aid was accessed after at least one key behavior had already been performed. The time from event trigger to cognitive aid use varied by type of scenario (P=.03, df 5, adjusted H 12.78), with the shortest time for "supraventricular tachycardia" (90 [66,156] seconds (median [IQR]) and the longest time for "hypoxemia" (354 [192,492] seconds). In simulated critical events, anesthesia residents and student nurse anesthetists often consulted a cognitive aid only after first performing at least some key behaviors. Incorporating the possibility of delayed access into critical event cognitive aid design may facilitate the effectiveness of that aid.

Use of a Digital Cognitive Aid in the Early Management of Simulated War Wounds in a Combat Environment, a Randomized Trial.

The French army has implemented an algorithm based on the acronym "MARCHE RYAN," each letter standing for a key action to complete in order to help first care providers during emergency casualty care. On the battlefield, the risk of error is increased, and the use of cognitive aids (CAs) might be helpful to avoid distraction. We investigated the effect of using a digital CA (MAX, for Medical Assistance eXpert) by combat casualty care providers on their technical and nontechnical performances during the early management of simulated war wounds, compared to their memory and training alone. We conducted a randomized, controlled, unblinded study between July 2016 and February 2017. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Ethical Board of Desgenettes Army Training Hospital (14.06.2017 n°385) and was registered on clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03483727). It took place during medicalization training in hostile environment ("MEDICHOS") in Chamonix Mont-Blanc and in the first aid training center in La Valbonne military base (France). Each participant had to deal with two different scenarios, one with MAX (MAX+) and the other without (MAX-). Scenarios were held using either high-fidelity patient simulators or actors as wounded patients. The primary outcome was participants' technical performance rated as their adherence to the MARCHE RYAN procedure (maximum 100%). The secondary outcome was the nontechnical performance according to the Ottawa crisis resource management Global Rating Scale (maximum 42). Technical performance was significantly higher in the MAX+ scenarios (70.60 IQR [63.70-73.56] than in the MAX- scenarios (56.25 IQR [52.88-62.09], p=0.002). The Ottawa scores were significantly higher in the MAX+ scenarios (31.50 IQR [29.50-33.75]) than in the MAX- scenarios (29.50 IQR [24.50-32.00], p=0.031). The use of a digital CA by combat casualty care providers improved technical and nontechnical performances during field training of simulated crises. Following recommendations on the design and use of CA, regular team training would improve fluidity in the use and acceptance of an aid, by a highly drilled professional corporation with a strong culture of leadership. Digital CA should be tested at a larger scale in order to validate their contribution to real combat casualty care.

Promoting anaesthesia providers' non-technical skills through the Vital Anaesthesia Simulation Training (VAST) course in a low-resource setting

BackgroundShort educational programmes are important in building global anaesthesia workforce capacity. The Vital Anaesthesia Simulation Training (VAST) course is a 3-day immersive simulation-based programme concentrating on core clinical challenges and non-technical skills required by anaesthesia providers in low-resource settings. MethodsThis mixed methods study prospectively evaluated the impact of VAST in Rwanda. Anaesthetists' Non-Technical Skills (ANTS) scores were quantitatively assessed for 30 course participants at three time points (pre-, post-, and 4 months after VAST). Qualitative data were gathered during focus groups (4 months after VAST) to learn of participants' experiences implementing new knowledge into clinical practice. ResultsThe ANTS total scores improved from pre- (11.0 [2.3]) (mean [standard deviation]) to post-test (14.0 [1.6]), and improvements were maintained at retention (14.2 [1.7]). A similar pattern was observed when data were analysed using the four ANTS categories (all P<0.001). The key theme that emerged during focus group discussions was that the use of cognitive aids and clinical algorithms, repeated and reinforced across simulated scenarios, encouraged a systematic approach to patient care. The participants attributed the systematic approach to improving their problem-solving skills and confidence, particularly during emergencies. They found value in well-functioning teams and shared decision-making. After VAST, the participants described empowerment to advocate for better patient care and system improvement. ConclusionsVAST offers a simulation-based training to anaesthesia providers working in low-resource settings. Skills retention and self-reported application of learning into the workplace reflect the scope of impact of this training.

Effect of Cognitive Aids on Adherence to Best Practice in the Treatment of Deteriorating Surgical Patients

Failure to rescue causes significant morbidity and mortality in the surgical population. Human error is often the underlying cause of failure to rescue. Human error can be reduced by the use of cognitive aids. To test the effectiveness of cognitive aids on adherence to best practice in the management of deteriorating postoperative surgical ward patients. Randomized clinical trial in a simulation setting. Surgical teams consisted of 1 surgeon and 2 nurses from a surgical ward from 4 different hospitals in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Data were analyzed between February 2, 2017, and December 18, 2018. The teams were randomized to manage 3 simulated deteriorating patient scenarios with or without the use of cognitive aids. The primary outcome of the study was failure to adhere to best practice, expressed as the percentage of omitted critical management steps. The secondary outcome of the study was the perceived usability of the cognitive aids. Of the total participants, 93 were women and 51 were men. Twenty-five surgical teams performed 75 patient scenarios with cognitive aids, and 25 teams performed 75 patient scenarios without cognitive aids. Using the cognitive aids resulted in a reduction of omitted critical management steps from 33% to 10%, which is a 70% (P < .001) reduction. This effect remained significant (odds ratio, 0.63; 95% CI, -0.228 to -0.061; P = .001) in a multivariate analysis. Overall usability (scale of 0-10) of the cognitive aids was scored at a median of 8.7 (interquartile range, 8-9). Failure to comply with best practice management of postoperative complications is associated with worse outcomes. In this simulation study, adherence to best practice in the management of postoperative complications improves significantly by the use of cognitive aids. Cognitive aids for deteriorating surgical patients therefore have the potential to reduce failure to rescue and improve patient outcome. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03812861.

The effect of cognitive aid design on the perceived usability of critical event cognitive aids.

Critical events require that clinicians process information and make decisions quickly. To reduce mental workload during such events, cognitive aids have been developed. We have previously observed that designing such aids to facilitate discrete information transfer decreased time to information finding. However, whether clinicians perceive aids designed for discrete information transfer as more usable than step-by-step designs remains unclear. We hypothesized that experimental cognitive aids designed for discrete information transfer would be judged more usable than step-by-step Linear aids. Volunteer clinicians were asked to use cognitive aids during low fidelity simulation scenarios. Experimental cognitive aids featuring color-coded, labeled, and consistently located content clusters were compared with aids formatted in a traditional step-by-step fashion. We then performed a quantitative assessment of perceived usability and conducted structured knowledge elicitation interviews. Clinicians rated the two experimental cognitive aids as more usable than the Linear aid. On a 0-100 scale the median (IQR) rating was 25(18,23) for the Linear aid and 89(80,95) and 81(65,90) for the two experimental designs, respectively, with a higher number indicating greater ease of use (P<.01 for each). Narrative responses suggested specific features that improved usability and a thematic analysis identified six major themes driving preference for cognitive aid use. During simulated critical events, cognitive aids designed for discrete information transfer were considered more usable than step by step Linear aids. Specific themes governing usability were identified during mixed methods analysis. Further work is needed to optimize cognitive aid use among anesthesia clinicians.

Prevalence of Errors in Anaphylaxis in Kids (PEAK): A Multicenter Simulation-Based Study

Multi-institutional, international practice variation of pediatric anaphylaxis management by health care providers has not been reported. To characterize variability in epinephrine administration for pediatric anaphylaxis across institutions, including frequency and types of medication errors. A prospective, observational, study using a standardized in situ simulated anaphylaxis scenario was performed across 28 health care institutions in 6 countries. The on-duty health care team was called for a child (patient simulator) in anaphylaxis. Real medications and supplies were obtained from their actual locations. Demographic data about team members, institutional protocols for anaphylaxis, timing of epinephrine delivery, medication errors, and systems safety issues discovered during the simulation were collected. Thirty-seven in situ simulations were performed. Anaphylaxis guidelines existed in 41% (15 of 37) of institutions. Teams used a cognitive aid for medication dosing 41% (15 of 37) of the time and 32% (12 of 37) for preparation. Epinephrine autoinjectors were not available in 54% (20 of 37) of institutions and were used in only 14% (5 of 37) of simulations. Median time to epinephrine administration was 95 seconds (interquartile range, 77-252) for epinephrine autoinjector and 263 seconds (interquartile range, 146-407.5) for manually prepared epinephrine (P= .12). At least 1 medication error occurred in 68% (25 of 37) of simulations. Nursing experience with epinephrine administration for anaphylaxis was associated with fewer preparation (P= .04) and administration (P= .01) errors. Latent safety threats were reported by 30% (11 of 37) of institutions, and more than half of these (6 of 11) involved a cognitive aid. A multicenter, international study of simulated pediatric anaphylaxis reveals (1) variation in management between institutions in the use of protocols, cognitive aids, and medication formularies, (2) frequent errors involving epinephrine, and (3) latent safety threats related to cognitive aids among multiple sites.

Learners and Luddites in the Twenty-first Century: Bringing Evidence-based Education to Anesthesiology.

Anesthesiologists are both teachers and learners and alternate between these roles throughout their careers. However, few anesthesiologists have formal training in the methodologies and theories of education. Many anesthesiology educators often teach as they were taught and may not be taking advantage of current evidence in education to guide and optimize the way they teach and learn. This review describes the most up-to-date evidence in education for teaching knowledge, procedural skills, and professionalism. Methods such as active learning, spaced learning, interleaving, retrieval practice, e-learning, experiential learning, and the use of cognitive aids will be described. We made an effort to illustrate the best available evidence supporting educational practices while recognizing the inherent challenges in medical education research. Similar to implementing evidence in clinical practice in an attempt to improve patient outcomes, implementing an evidence-based approach to anesthesiology education may improve learning outcomes.

Emergency Manual Implementation in a Large Academic Anesthesia Practice: Strategy and Improvement in Performance on Critical Steps

The use of cognitive aids, such as emergency manuals (EMs), improves team performance on critical steps during crisis events. In our large academic anesthesia practice, we sought to broadly implement an EM and subsequently evaluate team member performance on critical steps. We observed the phases of implementing an EM at a large academic anesthesia practice from 2013 to 2016, including the formation of the EM implementation team, identification of preferred EM characteristics, consideration of institution-specific factors, selection of the preferred EM, recognition of logistical barriers, and staff education. Utilization of the EM was tested in a regular clinical environment with all available resources using a standardized verbal simulation of 3 crisis events both preimplementation and 6 months postimplementation. Individual members of the anesthesia team were asked to verbalize interventions for specific crisis events over 60 seconds. We introduced a customized version of the Stanford Emergency Manual on January 26, 2015. Fifty-nine total participants (equal proportion of anesthesiology attending physicians, resident physicians, certified registered nurse anesthetists, and student registered nurse anesthetist staff) were surveyed in the preimplementation phase and 60 in the 6-month postimplementation phase. In the postimplementation phase, a minority (41.7%) utilized the EM for the verbal-simulated crisis events. Those who used the EM performed better than those who did not (median 21.0 critical steps out of a possible 30 total steps [70.0%], interquartile range 19-25 vs 18.0 critical steps verbalized [60.0%], interquartile range 16-20; P < .001). Among all subjects, the median number of critical steps verbalized was 16 (53.3%) preimplementation and 19.5 critical steps (65.0%) postimplementation. Implementation of an EM in a large academic anesthesia practice is not without challenges. While full integration of the EM was not achieved 6 months after implementation, verbalization of critical steps on 3 simulated crisis events improved when the EM was utilized.

A prospective evaluation of the ‘C.O.A.C.H.E.D.’ cognitive aid for emergency defibrillation

IntroductionInternational guidelines recommend that interruptions to chest compressions are minimised during defibrillation. As a result, some resuscitation educators have adopted a more structured approach to defibrillation. One such approach is the ‘C.O.A.C.H.E.D.’ cognitive aid (Continue compressions, Oxygen away, All others away, Charging, Hands off, Evaluate, Defibrillate or Disarm). To date, there are no studies assessing the use of this cognitive aid. MethodsThis study utilised an Emergency Department in situ simulated model of cardiac arrest. The defibrillator used was a proprietary R-Series (Zoll, PA, USA) connected to a CS1201 rhythm generator (Symbio, Beaverton, OR, USA). The study cohorts were interdisciplinary advanced life support (ALS) providers. Paired providers were enrolled in a mechanical CPR (M-CPR) training programme with no feedback related to defibrillation performance. As part of this 6-month programme, serial defibrillation performance was assessed. The outcome measures were the length of ‘peri-shock’ pause and ‘safety’ of defibrillation practice. Comparative statistical analysis using the Mann–Whitney U-test was made between groups of providers with ‘correct use or near correct’ or ‘entirely incorrect or absent’ use of the cognitive aid. ResultsThe C.O.A.C.H.E.D. cognitive aid was applied correctly in 92 of 109 defibrillations. Providers with correct cognitive aid use had a median length of peri-shock pause time of 6.0s (IQR 5.0–7.0). Providers with ‘entirely incorrect or absent’ cognitive aid use had a peri-shock pause time of 8.0s (IQRF 6.6–10.0) (p≤0.001). No unsafe defibrillation practices were observed. ConclusionIn this observational study of defibrillation performance, the use of the C.O.A.C.H.E.D. cognitive aid was associated with a significant decrease in the length of peri-shock pause. Therefore, we conclude that the use of a cognitive aid is appropriate for teaching and performing defibrillation.

Vía aérea difícil en el paciente crítico, mucho más que habilidades técnicas

IntroductionAlthough the approach of the airway is a challenge for the health team, airway management is even more difficult in critically ill patients. Decision making, interaction within the team, the use of resources, as well as motor skills may be affected under stress, and go against the outcome as regards patient safety. ObjectivesTo review the state of the art in the management of the difficult airway in the critically ill patient, from the knowledge of this discipline to the non-technical skills. Materials and methodsA literature review was made in the literature databases (OvidSP, PubMed, ScienceDirect, EMBASE and databases of authors) with the keywords; Articles were selected in which there was a relationship between at least 2 of the 6 keywords. ResultsManagement recommendations were produced and a cognitive aid for use in crisis situations was designed. ConclusionsTraining and developing non-technical skills, such as leadership, teamwork, decision-making, situational awareness, as well as the use of cognitive aids can help in the efficient and safe management of the difficult airway in severely ill patients, in which something more than mechanical skills and technological resources are required.

Factors associated with the use of cognitive aids in operating room crises: a cross-sectional study of US hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers

BackgroundOperating room (OR) crises are high-acuity events requiring rapid, coordinated management. Medical judgment and decision-making can be compromised in stressful situations, and clinicians may not experience a crisis for many years. A cognitive aid (e.g., checklist) for the most common types of crises in the OR may improve management during unexpected and rare events. While implementation strategies for innovations such as cognitive aids for routine use are becoming better understood, cognitive aids that are rarely used are not yet well understood. We examined organizational context and implementation process factors influencing the use of cognitive aids for OR crises.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional study using a Web-based survey of individuals who had downloaded OR cognitive aids from the websites of Ariadne Labs or Stanford University between January 2013 and January 2016. In this paper, we report on the experience of 368 respondents from US hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers. We analyzed the relationship of more successful implementation (measured as reported regular cognitive aid use during applicable clinical events) with organizational context and with participation in a multi-step implementation process. We used multivariable logistic regression to identify significant predictors of reported, regular OR cognitive aid use during OR crises.ResultsIn the multivariable logistic regression, small facility size was associated with a fourfold increase in the odds of a facility reporting more successful implementation (p = 0.0092). Completing more implementation steps was also significantly associated with more successful implementation; each implementation step completed was associated with just over 50% higher odds of more successful implementation (p ≤ 0.0001). More successful implementation was associated with leadership support (p < 0.0001) and dedicated time to train staff (p = 0.0189). Less successful implementation was associated with resistance among clinical providers to using cognitive aids (p < 0.0001), absence of an implementation champion (p = 0.0126), and unsatisfactory content or design of the cognitive aid (p = 0.0112).ConclusionsSuccessful implementation of cognitive aids in ORs was associated with a supportive organizational context and following a multi-step implementation process. Building strong organizational support and following a well-planned multi-step implementation process will likely increase the use of OR cognitive aids during intraoperative crises, which may improve patient outcomes.

Cognitive Aids Do Not Prompt Initiation of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation in Simulated Pediatric Cardiopulmonary Arrests.

Although American Heart Association guidelines exist for proper management of cardiopulmonary arrest (CPA), in-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) may be of poor quality and is not performed in all indicated situations. Cognitive aids have been created to assist in rapid, accurate recall of guidelines for pediatric CPA management. Pediatric residents participated in individual mock codes for two years. Using a high-fidelity simulator, each resident participated in a standardized scenario that required management of both pulseless ventricular tachycardia and pulseless electrical activity. The primary study objective was to calculate the proportion of residents (a) who were not performing CPR on a simulated "pulseless" patient when cognitive aid use was first initiated and (b) who subsequently initiated CPR after cognitive aid use. One hundred thirty-two (83.5%) of 158 pediatric residents participated, and of 125 videos available for review, 107 residents (85.6%) used a cognitive aid. Mean (SD) time to cognitive aid use was 106 (100) seconds after the mannequin became pulseless. Most common immediate actions prompted by cognitive aid use were the following: defibrillation, 43 (40%) of 107; and adrenaline (epinephrine) administration, 28 (26%) of 107. Most alarmingly, 58 (54%) of 107 were not performing CPR on the pulseless patient when cognitive aid use was initiated and only two (3.4%) of 58 were subsequently prompted to initiate chest compressions. Cognitive aids in use during this study did not prompt timely initiation of CPR, potentially contributing to delays and errors in CPA management. Failure of these aids to prompt CPR initiation represents a "missed opportunity" to enhance performance of this vital skill.

Clinician-Driven Design of VitalPAD-An Intelligent Monitoring and Communication Device to Improve Patient Safety in the Intensive Care Unit.

The pediatric intensive care unit (ICU) is a complex environment, in which a multidisciplinary team of clinicians (registered nurses, respiratory therapists, and physicians) continually observe and evaluate patient information. Data are provided by multiple, and often physically separated sources, cognitive workload is high, and team communication can be challenging. Our aim is to combine information from multiple monitoring and therapeutic devices in a mobile application, the VitalPAD, to improve the efficiency of clinical decision-making, communication, and thereby patient safety. We observed individual ICU clinicians, multidisciplinary rounds, and handover procedures for 54 h to identify data needs, workflow, and existing cognitive aid use and limitations. A prototype was developed using an iterative participatory design approach; usability testing, including general and task-specific feedback, was obtained from 15 clinicians. Features included map overviews of the ICU showing clinician assignment, patient status, and respiratory support; patient vital signs; a photo-documentation option for arterial blood gas results; and team communication and reminder functions. Clinicians reported the prototype to be an intuitive display of vital parameters and relevant alerts and reminders, as well as a user-friendly communication tool. Future work includes implementation of a prototype, which will be evaluated under simulation and real-world conditions, with the aim of providing ICU staff with a monitoring device that will improve their daily work, communication, and decision-making capacity. Mobile monitoring of vital signs and therapy parameters might help improve patient safety in wards with single-patient rooms and likely has applications in many acute and critical care settings.

Enhancing the quality and safety of the perioperative patient.

Many possible hazards bedevil the perioperative patient. This review focuses on a number of aspects of perioperative management where the patient's quality and safety can be enhanced. Our understanding of the relationship between preoperative preparation and postoperative outcomes has improved. There have also been recent developments in our understanding of how to construct useful cognitive aids and make the best use of checklists by understanding the cultural environment supporting their use. Postoperatively, the concept of 'failure to rescue' in the surgical patients has been explored. A clear vision of what postoperative recovery should mean for practitioner and patients; careful risk stratification and prophylactic measures to avoid postoperative complications; the judicious use of checklists and other cognitive aids to complement clinical expertise in promoting safety within each local context; and the prompt recognition and rescue of postoperative problems when they occur are all important aspects of a safe perioperative care.

Using simulation to iteratively test and re-design a cognitive aid for use in the management of severe local anaesthetic toxicity

IntroductionCognitive aids, such as a guideline for the management of severe local anaesthetic (LA) toxicity, are tools designed to help users complete a task. Human factors experts recommend the use of simulation to iteratively test and re-design these tools. The purpose of this study was to apply human factors engineering principles to the testing and iterative re-design of three existing cognitive aids used for the management of severe LA toxicity and to use these data to develop a ‘new’ cognitive aid.MethodsTwenty anaesthetist–anaesthetic assistant pairs were randomised into four groups. Each of the first three groups received one of three different existing cognitive aids during a standardised simulated LA toxicity crisis. Postsimulation semistructured interviews were conducted to identify features beneficial and detrimental to the format and usability of the aid. Synthesis of the interview data with established checklist design recommendations resulted in a prototype aid, which was subjected to further testing and re-design by the fourth group (five more pairs) under the same conditions thus creating the final iteration of the new aid.ResultsFeatures of the new aid included a single-stream flowchart structure, single-sided, large-font design with colour contrast, simplified instructions and no need for calculations. This simplified tool contains only the information users reported as essential for the immediate crisis management.ConclusionsUtilisation of formative usability testing and simulation-based user-centred design resulted in a visually very different cognitive aid and reinforces the importance of designing aids in the context in which they are to be used. Simplified tools may be more appropriate for use in emergencies but more detailed guidelines may be necessary for training, education and development of local standard operating procedures. Iterative simulation-based testing and re-design is likely to be of assistance when developing aids for other crises, and to eliminate design failure as a confounder when investigating the relationship between use of cognitive aids and performance.

Effectiveness and acceptability of a virtual environment for assessing human–robot collaboration in manufacturing

A highly immersive and interactive virtual environment was constructed as an experimentation platform for human–robot collaboration in constricting panels from preimpregnated carbon fibre fabrics. The application involves highly collaborative tasks such as handover, removal of adhesive backing strip and fabric layup in a mould. Furthermore, the user is expected to be most of the time within the robot’s workspace, jointly working as teammates on collaborative manufacturing tasks. The environment embeds two interaction metaphors for complex tasks and advocates use of cognitive aids to cultivate proactive behaviour of the user, thus promoting situation awareness, danger perception and enrichment of communication between human and robot. The application was put under test by a group of users. Their experience was registered scholarly through questionnaires and objective observation and is reported in the paper to explore the effectiveness and acceptability of such an environment. Overall, the application was judged positively, especially the use of cognitive aids which, under circumstances turned into alarms and readily provided mental association of collision danger to its cause. Furthermore, some deficiencies were identified pertaining to lack of hand-tracking performance and need to improve the layup metaphor.

Emergency Manual Uses During Actual Critical Events and Changes in Safety Culture From the Perspective of Anesthesia Residents: A Pilot Study.

Emergency manuals (EMs), context-relevant sets of cognitive aids or crisis checklists, have been used in high-hazard industries for decades, although this is a nascent field in health care. In the fall of 2012, Stanford clinically implemented EMs, including hanging physical copies in all Stanford operating rooms (ORs) and training OR clinicians on the use of, and rationale for, EMs. Although simulation studies have shown the effectiveness of EMs and similar tools when used by OR teams during crises, there are little data on clinical implementations and uses. In a subset of clinical users (ie, anesthesia residents), the objectives of this pilot study were to (1) assess perspectives on local OR safety culture regarding cognitive aid use before and after a systematic clinical implementation of EMs, although in the context of long-standing resident simulation trainings; and (2) to describe early clinical uses of EMs during critical events. Surveys collecting both quantitative and qualitative data were used to assess clinical adoption of EMs in the OR. A pre-implementation survey was e-mailed to Stanford anesthesia residents in mid-2011, followed by a post-implementation survey to a new cohort of residents in early 2014. The post-implementation survey included pre-implementation survey questions for exploratory comparison and additional questions for mixed-methods descriptive analyses regarding EM implementation, training, and clinical use during critical events since implementation. Response rates were similar for the pre- and post-implementation surveys, 52% and 57%, respectively. Comparing post- versus pre-implementation surveys in this pilot study, more residents: agreed or strongly agreed "the culture in the ORs where I work supports consulting a cognitive aid when appropriate" (73.8%, n = 31 vs 52.9%, n = 18, P = .0017) and chose more types of anesthesia professionals that "should use cognitive aids in some way," including fully trained anesthesiologists (z = -2.151, P = .0315). Fifteen months after clinical implementation of EMs, 19 respondents (45%) had used an EM during an actual critical event and 15 (78.9% of these) agreed or strongly agreed "the EM helped the team deliver better care to the patient" during that event, with the rest neutral. We present qualitative data for 16 of the 19 EM clinical use reports from free-text responses within the following domains: (1) triggering EM use, (2) reader role, (3) diagnosis and treatment, (4) patient care impact, and (5) barriers to EM use. Since Stanford's clinical implementation of EMs in 2012, many residents' self-report successful use of EMs during clinical critical events. Although these reports all come from a pilot study at a single institution, they serve as an early proof of concept for feasibility of clinical EM implementation and use. Larger, mixed-methods studies will be needed to better understand emerging facilitators and barriers and to determine generalizability.

Attitudes of pediatric intensive care unit physicians towards the use of cognitive aids: a qualitative study.

BackgroundCognitive aids are increasingly recommended in clinical practice, yet little is known about the attitudes of physicians towards these tools.MethodsWe employed a qualitative, descriptive design to explore physician attitudes towards cognitive aids in pediatric intensive care units (PICUs). Semi-structured interviews elicited the opinions of a convenience sample of practicing PICU physicians towards the use of cognitive aids. We analyzed interview data for thematic content to examine the three factors of intention to use cognitive aids as defined by the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), attitudes, social norms, and perceived control.ResultsAnalysis of 14 interviews suggested that in the PICU setting, cognitive aids are widely used. Discovered themes related to their use touched on all three TPB factors of intention and included: aids are perceived to improve team communication; aids may improve patient safety; aids may hinder clinician judgment; physicians may resist implementation if it occurs prior to demonstration of benefit; effective adoption requires cognitive aids to be integrated into local workplace culture; and implementation should take physician concerns into account.ConclusionsOur sample of PICU physicians were open to cognitive aids in their practice, as long as such aids preserve the primacy of clinical judgment, focus on team communication, demonstrate effectiveness through preliminary testing, and are designed and implemented with the local culture and work environment in mind. Future knowledge translation efforts to implement cognitive aids would benefit from consideration of these issues.