The biggest alarm culprits in the hospital are infusion pumps, which are responsible for administering IV medication at the correct rate. An air bubble in the

The biggest alarm culprits in the hospital are infusion pumps, which are responsible for administering IV medication at the correct rate. An air bubble in the line, a crimp because the patient's arm is bent, or the end of the bag of medication all cause a relentless beeping that usually requires manual intervention. What's more, the beeping happens at the patient's bedside. Of all the actors who are in a clinical hospital environment, it is the patient who is the absolute least empowered to do anything to change the situation, but who is also the most negatively impacted by an alarm. Loss of sleep is a major problem for hospitalized patients[1]. Perhaps nurses respond more to patient beeps/complaints than to the alarms themselves, but it's a bit sadistic if you think about it (though unintentionally). [1] http://journals.rcni.com/doi/pdfplus/10.7748/ns.29.28.35.e8947 http://journals.rcni.com/doi/pdfplus/10.7748/ns.29.28.35.e89...