What Every Risk Manager Should Know About Capnography

The over-sedation of patients receiving pain medication, and the resulting adverse effects such as respiratory failure, has received increased scrutiny from patient safety advocates and from the medical community itself. In fact, a recent Veterans of Health administration analysis revealed that 60% of adverse events caused by the over-sedation of patients receiving pain medication through infusion pumps could have been prevented with the use of capnography monitoring.

As a risk manager, you’ll want to be aware of the recommendations regarding capnography, the most recent capnography studies, and the safety risks surrounding external infusion pumps.

Separately, these documents provide a host of valuable information that can help educate and inform. Taken together, they can help you make good decisions for your hospital and your patients.