New Jersey calls for standardization of patient arm bands

October 24, 2007

Upon admission to a hospital, patients are often given colored wrist bands to denote a specific aspect of their conditions. This can be useful but can often be confusing when the colors are not standardized throughout a healthcare system or state. The New Jersey Hospital Association and the New Jersey Department of Health are trying to reduce the chances of error by standardizing the colors of all patient arm bands.

Though no adverse events caused by arm band confusion have been reported in New Jersey, other such events have occurred in other parts of the country. In April, New Jersey surveyed 75 healthcare facilities and found many different colored wrist bands with different meanings. This prompted the push for standardization.

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