Interruptions, work coordination, and resilience (2014-2017)

Evidence is emerging of an association between the number of workplace interruptions that hospital clinicians experience and outcomes such as clinical errors that could cause patient harm. However there is still no direct evidence that interruptions cause clinical errors. In this project we seek such evidence, but we also view interruptions as an integral part of normal work coordination. We investigate the origin and need for interruptions, we test causal connections between interruptions and errors, and we explore workplace improvements as a means to handle concerns about interruptions. Our research will provide a solid basis from which clinical leaders can formulate policy about distractions and interruptions in the healthcare workplace.