Extended Situational Awareness and Resilience in Healthcare Systems

Abstract

There is enough literature on situational awareness (SA) to establish it as an important construct in designing a socio-technical system. The tools and methods to measure SA are also available. The next course of action is to develop the conception and measure of extended SA, as opposed to individual SA. This need is even more pressing within the context of safety critical and dynamic organization, such as hospitals. In this context, human factor goals, such as safety, are understood by examining the normal variability within a system. This study aims to examine the utility of extended SA in a resilience engineering framework. This aim will be achieved by measuring the relationship between extended SA and dimensions of system’s resilience. The outcomes of the study will help to clarify the role of extended SA in maintaining system’s resilience.     

Keywords: human factors, situational awareness, socio-technical system, safety resilience engineering, health care