Doctors Need Reminding Too: Tantrum Tuesday

Medical errors cost over $67 billion a year. They could also cost you your life. There is a simple way to cut down on errors. It’s LIST!

Intensive care specialist (anesthesiologist and critical care physician) at John Hopkins University, Peter J. Pronovost, M.D., Ph.D.  has been busy beating the drum on how simple and effective a medical checklist can be to eliminate preventable medical errors.

The Stats are Scarier than the Hospital Stay

  • 22% of Americans report they or a family member have experienced a medical error.
  • Medical errors are the 8th leading cause of death in the U.S.
  • Hospital acquired infections exceed 1.7 million per year.
  • Many hospital acquired infections are resistant to antibiotic treatment.

So What is a Medical Checklist?

Checklists can list a variety of standard medical safety, medical-errormedication disbursement, sanitation , surgical prep and patient contact procedures.

When you read the list(s), you’ll be shocked that anyone would need to be reminded of what would seem to be obvious even to a layperson.

Suggested checklist items such as:

  1. Wash their hands with soap.
  2. Clean the patient’s skin with chlorhexidine antiseptic.
  3. Put sterile drapes over the entire patient.
  4. Wear a sterile mask, hat, gown and gloves.
  5. Put a sterile dressing over the catheter site.

But wouldn’t you know it – many doctors don’t think they need  the help of a checklist. You know the type – the one’s that have let you know they have lots of degrees, like to talk like God or just don’t like being questioned. We probably cannot do anything with arrogant medical professionals (and we may one day need their expertise) but we can insist that they do everything within their power to eliminate medical errors. A simple step is to use a medical checklist.

Checklists Work to Save Money and Lives

During one state’s 18-month training and implementation period, checklists saved over $100 million and 1,500 lives. You’d think hospitals and insurance companies would be demanding that checklists be incorporated into every physician/patient interaction.

But you see the rub is that nurses would be part of the monitoring system and doctors don’t like to take “orders” from a nurse.

Nurses, who are the front line caregivers, are woefully under appreciated and disrespected. Although years of training and experience qualifies them to be a valuable safeguard on the patient’s behalf, their input is often rebuffed by the “real” doctors. Checklists would need to be a responsibility of nursing and medical support staff.

Doctors simply need to get over themselves and realize that everyone needs some checks and balance to catch potential errors that arise from simple human error, exhaustion, routines that become so common that steps are skipped or medical people who are just “too busy.”

What You Can Do

  1. Ask as a consumer whether your physician, surgeon, hospital, clinic uses medical checklists BEFORE a procedure is scheduled.
  2. If you have a choice of hospitals, select one that uses medical professional checklists.

To learn more about medical checklists so you can be prepared to insist your local medical professionals adopt this life saving procedure, check out these resources:

Pilots use checklists, builders use checklists, shoppers use checklists, checklists are nothing to be ashamed of - You must insist that doctors use checklists.


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