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Do Safety Checklists Improve Teamwork and Communication in the Operating Room? A Systematic Review

Annals of SurgeryPublished 30 October 2013
Stephanie Russ, Shantanu Rout, Nick Sevdalis, Krishna Moorthy, Ara Darzi, Charles Vincent
Citations321
SJR quartileQ1
SJR score2.59
SNIP2.41

TL;DR

Evidence suggests that safety checklists improve the perceived quality of OR teamwork and communication and reduce observable errors relating to poor team skills and this may be one mechanism through which patient outcomes are improved.

Abstract

Safety checklists are beneficial for OR teamwork and communication and this may be one mechanism through which patient outcomes are improved. Future research should aim to further elucidate the relationship between how safety checklists are used and team skills in the OR using more consistent methodological approaches and utilizing validated measures of teamwork such that best practice guidelines can be established.

Keywords

MedicineHealth Professions