OVER THE PAST decade much time and attention has been directed to patient safety. The Institute of Medicine's report "To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System" alerted health care providers, as well as the general public to the fact that medical errors are a significant contributor to patient mortality and morbidity. As many as 98,000 patients die every year because of medical errors at a cost of 17 to 29 billion dollars. Many patient safety initiatives have become commonplace in the perianesthesia and perioperative arenas including the Universal Protocol, Surgical Care Improvement Project (SCIP), and Safe Surgery Saves Lives campaign. Evidence is available that points to the use of checklists in the health care setting as a way to reduce errors, improve safety, and improve outcomes. Professional societies develop and distribute standards and guidelines with the ultimate goal of improving the safety of patients.
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