Wednesday, 18 October 2023
A researcher based at the University of Nottingham is part of a group that has won two prestigious awards for its work producing practical guidance on human factors in anaesthesia.
The Human Factors Guideline Group of the Difficult Airway Society and the Association of Anaesthetists won the Royal College of Anaesthetists’ Humphry Davy Award and Chartered Institute of Ergonomics & Human Factors’ President’s Award, for its outstanding contribution to the development of human factors and improving clinical care.
Formed in 2017 and funded by the Difficult Airway Society, the group is made up of anaesthetists and human factors experts and has spent six years working on two papers, which were both published in the Anaesthesia journal in January this year. Since publication, the guidelines have benefitted anaesthetists across the globe, empowering them to make changes in their own hospitals.
Human factors is an evidence-based scientific discipline used in safety critical industries to improve safety and well-being. The implementation of human factors strategies in anaesthesia has the potential to reduce the reliance on exceptional personal and team performance to provide safe and high-quality patient care.
We formulated a set of 12 recommendations, which are described using a ‘hierarchy of controls’ model and classified into design, barriers, mitigations and education and training strategies. For our work to have been so well-received by those in the industry was something that we were already incredibly proud of, so to have now received two national awards as well really is the cherry on the cake.
The group is continuing to disseminate its advice through ongoing opportunities in several countries across the world to maintain awareness of its research and its benefits for industry.
To read the award-winning paper in Anaesthesia, click here.
Story credits
More information is available from Danielle Hall, Media Relations Manager at the University of Nottingham, at danielle.hall@nottingham.ac.uk or 0115 846 7156.
About the Faculty of Engineering
Made up of six departments – Architecture and Built Environment, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering and Foundation Engineering and Physical Sciences – the university’s Faculty of Engineering is home to more than 5,600 students and 800 staff.
The faculty, which has educated engineers and architects for more than 140 years, was the first in the country to be accredited with an Athena SWAN Gold Award for excellence in advancing gender equality across higher education and research and is home to multiple state-of-the-art facilities, including the recently opened £40m Power Electronics and Machines Centre (PEMC).
With research at its heart, 20 research groups are undertaking pioneering projects for a sustainable future across several themes – including net zero transport, sustainable energies and the built environment, advanced manufacturing, and healthcare technologies – and has delivered a positive impact in more than 20 countries. Within those countries, the faculty’s research has supported 500 companies and three governments – that have changed their strategies as a result of its research – and has also directly created jobs for around 3,000 people across the world.
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About the University of Nottingham
Ranked 32 in Europe and 16th in the UK by the QS World University Rankings: Europe 2024, the University of Nottingham is a founding member of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities. Studying at the University of Nottingham is a life-changing experience, and we pride ourselves on unlocking the potential of our students. We have a pioneering spirit, expressed in the vision of our founder Sir Jesse Boot, which has seen us lead the way in establishing campuses in China and Malaysia - part of a globally connected network of education, research and industrial engagement.
Nottingham was crowned Sports University of the Year by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 – the third time it has been given the honour since 2018 – and by the Daily Mail University Guide 2024.
The university is among the best universities in the UK for the strength of our research, positioned seventh for research power in the UK according to REF 2021. The birthplace of discoveries such as MRI and ibuprofen, our innovations transform lives and tackle global problems such as sustainable food supplies, ending modern slavery, developing greener transport, and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
The university is a major employer and industry partner - locally and globally - and our graduates are the second most targeted by the UK's top employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2022 report by High Fliers Research.
We lead the Universities for Nottingham initiative, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, a pioneering collaboration between the city’s two world-class institutions to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing for residents in the city and region we are proud to call home.
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