Time out! Rethinking surgical safety: more than just a (23 March 2021)

Summary

Patients are more likely to experience preventable harm during perioperative care than in any other type of healthcare encounter. For several decades, a hallmark of surgical quality and safety has been the use of checklists to prevent errors (eg, wrong site surgery) and assure that key tasks have been or will be performed. There are widely disseminated arguments recommending the use of checklists in healthcare but also recognised limitations. In this editorial, Matthew B. Weinger discusses the use of the checklist and its limitations.