In this randomized control trial, health care providers were less likely to accurately recall information when overloaded with too much and too frequent communication during an emergency.

Information delivered too frequently and/or repetitively through multiple communication channels can have a negative effect on health care providers’ ability to accurately recall and respond to emergency information. In a multi-site randomized control trial, regardless of provider type, gender, or age, providers had a 41% decrease in odds of recalling the content of the message with each additional message received. Coordinated efforts to avoid redundant and conflicting messages from multiple agencies is necessary to improve message recall during emergency situations.