Standardized patient wristband colors urged for Ohio hospitals

In an effort to reduce errors and improve patient safety, the Ohio Patient Safety Institute is leading a push among Ohio hospitals to standardize the color coding on patient wristbands (Source: “Ohio joining trend of color-coded wristbands to reduce hospital errors,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, Oct. 20, 2008).

The push for standardized color-coding came about after the patient-safety group, which is an arm of state hospital and physician associations, found in a survey last year that state health facilities used 19 different colors with 28 different meanings.

The Ohio group is recommending the use of four colors: red for allergies; yellow for fall risk; white or clear for patient identification and green for those receiving blood products.

The Ohio Hospital Association, which supports the plan, estimates that more than half of its members have converted to the new color scheme and others are working on it.