A National Patient Safety Alert has been issued asking all providers that use piped medical air to eliminate the risk of inadvertently connecting patients to medical air via a flowmeter instead of oxygen. National Patient Safety Alert – Eliminating the risk of inadvertent connection to medical air via a flowmeter About this alert Air flowmeters […]
A National Patient Safety Alert has been issued on the risk of death from unintended administration of sodium nitrite. National Patient Safety Alert – Risk of death from unintended administration of sodium nitrite About this alert Sodium nitrite has one licensed indication: as an antidote to cyanide poisoning. It can cause significant side effects and […]
A stage one warning has been issued to raise awareness of the introduction of new medical device connectors. Managing risks during the transition period to new ISO connectors for medical devices To reduce the risk of misconnections, the International Organization for Standardisation (ISO) has developed a series of new International Standards for small bore connectors […]
A warning alert has been issued around the risk of death and severe harm from ingestion of superabsorbent polymer gel granules. Risk of death and severe harm from ingestion of polymer gel granules Superabsorbent polymer gel granules are widely used in health and social care, typically as small sachets placed in urine and vomit bowls. […]
ECGs are routinely performed to diagnose cardiac problems and there are no risks associated with the test itself, however, there is a risk of associating ECG records with wrong patients leading to misdiagnosis and incorrect treatment. Risk of associating ECG records with wrong patients Patient safety alerts are shared rapidly with healthcare providers via the […]
A National Patient Safety Alert has been issued on blood control safety cannula and needle thoracostomy for tension pneumothorax National Patient Safety Alert – Blood control safety cannula and needle thoracostomy for tension pneumothorax About this alert To prevent cardiac arrest, immediate temporary decompression is required when tension pneumothorax occurs, for example, following chest trauma, […]
A patient safety alert has been issued today (14 April 2014) by NHS England on residual anaesthetic drugs in cannulae and intravenous lines leading to cardiac or respiratory arrest. The alert has been issued to all NHS services hospitals and community services in England that undertake surgery or other investigations and procedures using anaesthesia. Since […]
A patient safety alert has been issued by NHS England on the risk of using vacuum and suction drains when not clinically indicated. The alert has been issued for action to be taken by all acute hospitals in England where surgery is performed. The patient safety alert has been issued following the report of a […]
A patient safety alert has been issued today (5 December 2013) by NHS England on the use of placement devices for inserting nasogastric tubes. This alert has been issued via the Central Alerting System (CAS) to ensure all hospitals and community services that use nasogastric tubes continue to follow previous guidance issued by the National […]
A stage one warning has been issued to further raise awareness of the risk of harm or death from inappropriate doses of naloxone in patients on long-term opioid or opiate treatment, where these drugs are used to provide relief from both chronic and acute pain, such as following surgery. Risk of distress and death from […]