[carcraft]

I have worked in the health care systems, army, VA, and Medical teaching institution. One has to be a certified idiot to mix up these tubes and infusions. The is the old saying “Nothing is idiot proof”

[basil]

I’m with you! I’ve worked as an RN in several areas of the country—and to me, this is just NO excuse for stupidity like this!

I can’t even get my brain around this..............

[jazzlite]

Can we assume that nursing schools are selecting the brightest and best for that training and can we assume their clinical training is adequate before they are place on a hospital floor without supervision? I have my doubts.

[Kozak]

Yup. I had a friend in bioengineering who would tear his hair out over this. I saw a guy take a scalpel to a connector when it “just won’t go”. THERE”S a REASON it doesn’t fit moron.

[RipSawyer]

The is the old saying “Nothing is idiot proof””
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

True, as witnessed by the fact that you left re off the end of there, but this sounds like something that could benefit from some common sense design changes. Some things should be done without government mandates.

I worked many years doing electronic and electromechanical repairs and it sounds almost as though less thought is given to preventing mistakes in connecting medical devices than to preventing mistakes in wiring connections.

One particular piece of equipment I used to service in hospitals years ago had three large circuit boards with a dozen or more ribbon cables interconnecting them. All the ribbon cables were made so that the ends could not be connected if they were flipped the wrong way...EXCEPT for the main power supply cable which could easily be connected the wrong way, there was no asymmetry and no markings so that once disconnected it was not possible to determine which way it should be reconnected so I always marked the cable end and the matching receptacle before unplugging it. This was the only cable that could do major damage and it was the only one with no safeguard. It resulted in several instances of machines being fried to the point of requiring rebuild.

Unfortunately human beings are not easy to rebuild.

[GailA]

This person most likely has been incompetent from the beginning of their career.

[hinckley buzzard]

I agree. This is a plain stupid and inexcusable error and has nothing to do with "lax' federal oversight. But this is the Slimes, taking every opportunity to hump for government intrusion and control over the healthcare system. If they have their way we will have a billion dollar tube commission under the HHS Secretary.