Alarm FatigueAs healthcare workers, we are all familiar with the frequent alarm sounds that occur repeatedly, every hour of every day, in healthcare facilities. The goal of clinical alarms is to enhance patient safety by alerting healthcare providers to any alterations in pre-set parameters monitored for patient care. When healthcare workers are negatively affected by excessive alarms, alarm fatigue can occur. Alarm fatigue may lead caregivers to care less about alarms and may be responsible for a total disregard for alarms and/or waiting too long to respond to alarms. This is currently seen as an urgent and growing concern for patient safety. The use of medical devices equipped with alarms is constantly increasing (Sendelbach & Funk, 2013). The multitude of different devices and alarms presents a significant danger to patient safety. Healthcare workers who are overloaded with excessive alarms often experience alterations in their workflow that can lead to inaccuracies, interruptions, or inattention (Cvach, 2012). “From 2005 to 2008, the FDA received 566 reports of patient deaths related to monitoring device alarms” (Cvach, 2012, p. 269). This document will examine the effective management of clinical alarms to reduce nuisance alarms, decrease alarm fatigue, and increase patient safety. Medical Alarms Medical equipment alarms are created and designed to inform healthcare providers of a critical situation and/or potential complication (Cvach, 2012). An alarm incidence search revealed 1455 alarm observations, of which only 8 were deemed crucial and had the potential to endanger the patient's life. With patient safety currently a major focus in the healthcare industry, ineffective alarms are becoming a priority, considering the... middle of paper......data for alarms. This information was broken down into actions related to technology, hospital, and healthcare providers. Some of the EBP recommendations for technology are to set alarms that allow for short delays and standardize audible alarm sounds. For hospitals they recommend a multidisciplinary team that focuses on reducing alarms, creating alarm protocols, providing adequate staffing, ongoing training for equipment and alarms, and an overall noise reduction program. It is recommended that healthcare professionals know how to adjust alarms to each patient's individual needs, provide adequate skin preparation for monitor connection, and record alarm parameters for patients in their medical record (Cvach, 2012) . While adverse events can and do occur in relation to alarms, effective management of alarms can occur and reduce alarm fatigue leading to increased patient safety.