The challenge
Surgical complications were common and often preventable, with an estimated 234 million operations performed worldwide each year.
The case
Between October 2007 and September 2008, eight hospitals in Toronto, New Delhi, Amman, Auckland, Manila, Ifakara (Tanzania), London and Seattle introduced the World Health Organization's 19-item Surgical Safety Checklist as part of its Safe Surgery Saves Lives program. Researchers led by Alex Haynes and Atul Gawande tracked 3,733 consecutive adult patients having non-cardiac surgery before the checklist and 3,955 after. The death rate fell from 1.5% to 0.8%, and inpatient complications fell from 11.0% to 7.0%. Hospitals in rich and poor settings alike took part.
Why it worked
A simple checklist was linked to fewer deaths and complications across very different hospitals. The study compared patients before and after, without a control group, so it shows an association rather than proof that the checklist caused the fall.
Sources
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