Handbook of Human Factors and Ergonomics in Health Care and Patient Safetey

In 1999, the Institute of Medicine published a report exposing the high prevalence of medical error, boosting academic, medical, and human factors interest in this field. The Handbook of Human Factors and Ergonomics in Health Care and Patient Safety presents the most current knowledge on concepts and methods of human factors and ergonomics, and their applications to help improve quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness in patient care. This influential book provides specific information on how to analyze medical errors with the fundamental goal to reduce such errors and the harm that potentially ensues.

Editor Pascale Carayon and an impressive group of contributors highlight important issues relevant to healthcare providers and professionals and their employers. They discuss the design of work environment and working conditions to improve satisfaction and well-being, and the reduction of burnout and other ailments often experienced by healthcare providers and professionals. It is a remarkably comprehensive account offering readers invaluable knowledge from individuals who are some of the most respected in the field.

This important handbook should be read by all healthcare and human factors professionals, and is very useful to quality improvement and patient safety specialists in healthcare organizations. It is likewise appropriate for graduate-level courses in nursing and other fields, as well as undergraduate courses in human factors, ergonomics, and engineering.

Pascale Carayon is Procter & Gamble Bascom Professor in Total Quality in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering and the Director of the Center for Quality and Productivity Improvement (CQPI) at the University of Wisconsin/Madison. She received her Engineer diploma from the Ecole Centrale de Paris, France, in 1984 and her Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Wisconsin/Madison in 1988. Her research areas include systems engineering, human factors and ergonomics, sociotechnical engineering and occupational health and safety. She is a scientific editor for Applied Ergonomics and a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Patient Safety. She is the chair of the technical committee on Organizational Design And Management of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA), and is a member of the executive committee of the IEA, in charge of the Ergonomics In Quality Design (EQUID) program and chair of the Science, Technology and Practice committee. Dr. Carayon’s current research is funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense, the National Institute on Aging, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and various foundations and businesses. Dr. Carayon leads the Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety (SEIPS) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.