Implementing Second Surgical Checklist

Clinical Question 

The surgical processes come with a lot of risks and complications. The goal of healthcare workers should be to minimize risks as much as possible. The need to minimize risks during the surgical process, therefore, remains a major issue of concern for the healthcare workers. One of the areas examined as a way to minimize risks associated with surgical procedure is the surgical checklists. The clinical question therefore states; Would implementing a second surgical checklist before surgical procedures, compared to not using a second surgical checklist at all, decrease the number of wrongful procedures being carried and improve client safety? This question seeks to understand whether the application of the second surgical checklist would increase the safety of surgical patients. 

The complications arising from surgery have remained a significant healthcare problem for years. According to Kennedy & Tevis (2013), postoperative complications tend to increase the morbidity and mortality rates within the healthcare sector. In general surgery patients, the postoperative complications tend to increase the length of hospital stay. The focus on quality improvement in healthcare should, therefore, seek to reduce postoperative surgical complications and to improve the safety of the patients. Research further shows that the complications arising from surgery range from 5.8% to 43.5%, an indication of how serious the issue affect the safety of the surgical patients (Kennedy & Tevis, 2013). The purpose of this paper is, therefore, to analyze the research articles that answer the research question on the issue of second checklist surgery to promote patients safety during surgical procedures. 

Description of Findings 

According to Adankie, Getahune & Melekie (2017), surgical safety checklists are designed to improve the patients' safety by minimizing errors and complications that usually characterizes the surgical procedures. In the article, "Effect of Checklist on the Occurrence of Postoperative Complication on Surgical Patient,” Adankie, Getahune & Melekie (2017) examines the concept of surgical safety checklists and their role in reducing surgical complications. The researchers used a cross-sectional study design of medical records of all the patients admitted at the University of Gondar Hospital. The study analyzed the medical records of 403 surgical clients to understand their symptoms and complications that resulted after the surgery. The participants of the study were, therefore, the 403 surgical clients from the University of Gondar Hospital. The researchers performed a laboratory diagnosis for the patients who showed the surgical symptoms at the surgical site. 

In the sample of 403 participants, the findings show that the surgical safety checklist was attached to 158 (39.2%) of the patients. The postoperative complications were evident in 59% of the patients under study while the postoperative fever being evident in 17.3% (Adankie, Getahune & Melekie, 2017). From the results of the study, it was clear that the use of a surgical safety checklist can significantly reduce the level of postoperative infections and thus improve patients safety. This article provides evidence to support the role of the surgical checklist in promoting the safety of surgical clients. However, the research occurred in a single setting, and it remains unclear whether it can be useful in other settings. Also, the study relied on the medical record of patients as the source of data. This method raises the question as to whether the validation of the checklist can be presented. However, this article is useful for the study because it answers the research question using a clear methodology. 

In another study, Bernstein et al. (2012) examine the role of the surgical checklist in reducing the rates of postoperative complications from unintended harm. According to Bernstein et al. (2012), the surgical checklist is the most cost-effective way to enhance communication amongst healthcare workers and reduce postoperative complications. In the study design, three sixty-minute training sessions occurred with participants training on how to use a surgical checklist. The checklist for the high-risk surgical procedures was chosen from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program. The comparison of the data with the over 2000 historical control cases provided the results. In a sample of over 2000 participants, a portion was analyzed with a checklist. The other analysis occurred without a surgical checklist to compare the results. 

The results of the study show that the use of a surgical checklist can help to reduce the risks of postoperative complications significantly. With the team training, the checklist can greatly act as an inexpensive intervention to promote quality of care and reduce patients satisfaction (Bernstein et al., 2012). The findings of this research article provide an answer to the research question on the role of a surgical checklist in reducing postoperative complications. The issue of concern with the findings is whether the results would change if a follow-up took place on the participants for some time. 

Conclusion 

In conclusion, the safety of the patients in the surgical unit has remained a significant concern for healthcare workers due to high cases of postoperative complications. However, the use of the surgical safety checklist can reduce postoperative complications and enhance the safety of the patients. The second surgical checklist is currently the most inexpensive method to promote communication and reduce the complications that result from surgical processes. Research findings provide sufficient evidence to back the significance of second surgical checklist in promoting the safety of the patients. 

References 

Adankie, B., Getahune, G., & Melekie, T. (2017). Effect of Checklist on the Occurrence of 

Postoperative Complication on Surgical Patient. International Journal of Surgery and Medicine,3 (1), 2-7. 

https://www.ejmanager.com/mnstemps/136/136-1475924658.pdf 

Bernstein, B., Bliss, L., Ellner, S., Lukianoff, A., Ross-Richardson, C., Sanzari, L., & Shapiro, 

D. (2012). Thirty-Day Outcomes Support Implementation of a Surgical Safety Checklist. Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 215 (6), 766-776. 

https://www.journalacs.org/article/S1072-7515(12)00965-9/fulltext 

Kennedy, G. & Tevis, S. (2013). Postoperative Complications and Implications on Patient 

Centred Outcomes. The Journal of Surgical Research, 181 (1), 106-113. 

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2013.01.032 

Appendix 

Evidence Matrix Table