Club Meeting – April 3rd, 2014
Our program today by Sarah Henrickson Parker, PhD, was warmly received and fascinating. Her topic was “The Human Factor: Applying Science to Health Care”. It is about how understanding human foibles can help to mitigate human error. Dr. Parker holds a master’s degree in Human Factors and Applied Cognition from the George Mason University Department of Psychology. She completed her PhD in Industrial and Organizational Psychology at the University of Aberdeen (Scotland). Prior to pursuing her doctorate, Dr. Parker worked in applied human factors safety engineering at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester MN.
Dr. Parker as Director of Research and Academic Affairs leads the development and execution of the National Center for Human Factors in Healthcare education and training program. She is as an expert in conducting human factors research in healthcare. Her research focuses on human factors and applied psychology, with an emphasis on understanding team performance in high-risk healthcare settings.
Dr. Parker explained how innate human characteristics have to factor into any viable solutions to minimize errors in a work environment. We cannot change the human condition, but we can can change the conditions under which humans work. The research being done by Dr. Parker and her colleagues is helping to create a safer work environment in our hospitals and save lives.
To view a YouTube video on “Good Design, Bad Design – Innovations In Thinking Differently” by Dr. Parker… click here.
What is good design? Simplicity = least cognitive effort
Recent News about Dr. Parker – 2/1/14 – Dr. Parker has been awarded an international postdoctoral scholarship funded by the University of Fribourg Switzerland. She will work from Switzerland with the international expert in her field, Dr. Tanja Manser.
