It is being conducted in Washington, D.C., hospitals and at professional conferences. The study tests the understanding of procedures and equipment by creating realistic faults in sample machines with which the anesthesiologists are familiar. Evidence is accumulating that anesthesiologists are experiencing the greatest improvement in the incidence of medical liability claims of any specialty, according to the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation's Dr. Pierce. Improved technology and pre-use checks of equipment aren't the only efforts anesthetists are using to maintain and enhance their safety record. Studies have shown that only 1 in 20 deaths relating to the administration of anesthesia is the result of equipment failure alone.
Most incidents are related to operator error or a combination of operator and equipment problems.
Fifty-six minutes into his operation, the resident noted an increase in the pressure of the gases being pumped into his lungs. She checked beneath the surgical drapes to be sure the tube was not kinked and warned the surgeon against accidentally obstructing it as he worked close to the patient's airway. Also, his blood pressure was beginning to climb. Turning down the output of the ventilator to the patient resulted in a decrease in the pressure reading in his endotrachial tube within two minutes of the time the problem began. And oxygen saturation in the patient's bloodstream had begun to fall.