Healthcare software systems are integral to monitoring and notifying users about critical and contextual information. These “guardrails” have proven essential for improving compliance and, ultimately, patient outcomes. As a result, many institutions have implemented alerts across numerous processes to reinforce best practices. However, this over-reliance on alerts has led to an unintended consequence: alarm fatigue.
Alarm fatigue occurs when users become desensitized to the volume and frequency of alerts, reducing their ability to differentiate between critical and non-critical notifications. This phenomenon can result in users undermining the system by not giving alerts the attention they require or outright ignoring them, which in turn erodes compliance with established processes.
Based implementation at UF Shands, evidence suggests balancing robust notification systems with thoughtful policy management to optimize outcomes in healthcare.
