The Australian Incident Monitoring Study. Physical injuries and environmental safety in anaesthesia: an analysis of 2000 incident reports.

Of the first 2000 incidents reported to the Australian Incident Monitoring Study, 56 (3%) involved environmental hazards or injuries to patients or staff. There were 17 cases of oral trauma (14 of tooth loss or damage, in 7 of which poor dentition played a role), 10 incidents involving problems with the operating table, 6 cases of skin or eye damage and 6 cases in which an electrical hazard was identified. Five incidents occurred during transport, and there were 4 cases of monitor induced trauma, 4 "needlestick" injuries and 4 miscellaneous incidents. Recommendations are made for trying to avoid or reduce the incidence of some of these problems.