Patient safety is the primary concern of every person working in healthcare. The vast majority of critical incidents arise, at least in part, due to Human Factors: the way that people interact with one another and the shared culture and environment. There is increasing evidence that understanding and addressing these factors can lead to significant reductions in critical events. This book is a practical guide for health care professionals teaching human factors as a means of improving safety in teams and organisations. By raising awareness of the deeper understanding of the human factors which contribute to error, it looks at ways to prevent, circumvent or minimise these factors. A concise guide to integrating human factors in medicine, The Pocket Guide to Human Factors for Medical Instructors is the ALSGs course book for their training for medical instructors. The book adopts a practical approach which is the hallmark of all ALSG publications and courses. Written by well known, well respected members of the Emergency Medicine, Critical Care and Medical Education world, this book provides easily assimilated advice, beginning with a recognition of the factors leading to errors being made, followed by practical guidance on how to avoid them. The book is divided into eleven chapters: Introduction to human factors in medicine Human cognition and error Situation awareness Leadership and team working Personality and behaviour Communication and awareness Decision-making Fatigue and stress Key elements in communication: briefing and debriefing Organisational culture Guidelines, checklists and protocols To reinforce the text, free access to the accompanying sections of the online training course will be provided to those who purchase the book.
