Perceptions of hospital emergency color codes among hospital employees in Korea

Hospital emergency codes frequently comprise of colors to prevent confusion and enhance prompt response to emergency situations. The purpose of this study was to identify perceptions of emergency color codes among hospital employees in Korea.

A 12-color spectrum and emergency situations were selected from the standardized emergency color codes used in the US and Canada. Participants were selected via convenience sampling from four general hospitals in Seoul and Gyeonggi-Do. Between October 25 and November 30, 2016, 295 questionnaires were distributed and 266 of them were analyzed.

The participants showed the highest consistency in the association between emergency images related to colors and emergency code color images associated with emergency situations in the following cases: "red for fire," "blue for adult cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)," "yellow for pediatric CPR," "orange for external disaster," "pink for infant/child abduction," "white for deactivation," and "black for violent/combative person." Meanwhile, the most confusing colors were purple, gray, and silver. Hospital employees tended to select colors that matched the emergency codes used in their respective hospitals.

The four colors of "red," "blue," "pink," and "white," were strongly associated with "fire," "cardiac arrest," "infant/child abduction," and "emergency deactivation," respectively. The use of four colors for hospital emergency code standardization domestically in Korea is recommended.