Abstract
Ergonomics in the operating room (OR) is an unsolved problem for users and engineers. Deficiencies of the OR as a workplace cause potential hazards for the patient as well as for the OR staff. To detect those conditions a checklist for the OR was developed and as a first step evaluated in a German hospital. Medical technical devices were found to be lacking in usability due to such as unclear symbols, impracticability, hindrances and insufficient ease in handling. Also the positioning of devices in the OR shows ergonomic problems that in most cases necessitates an unavoidable awkward working posture for the employees that causes pain. The checklist can be used as a basic tool for the implementation of usability into the engineering process and design of new medical devices as well as for the usability testing of the final product.
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