The next time you have to stay in the hospital, leave your wrist bands and bracelets at home.

The Ohio Patient Safety Institute (OPSI) is asking all hospitals to use the same colors for patient wrist bands. After research, OPSI found 28 different uses for 13 different colors. Because many doctors visit more than one hospital, there is a chance they may get confused by all the different colors. An added risk is the public-cause bracelets that patients may wear, such as the yellow Live Strong band. These and other bracelets should be removed or covered with tape.

Patient ID—White Allergy—Red Fall risk—Yellow Blood—Green

The OPSI goal is to stop using wrist bands except for patient identification. Until then, hospitals, nursing homes, and other medical facilities should be using the same colors for the same purposes.