The Health Information and Quality Authority, at an event hosted by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), today launched the World Health Organization’s (WHO) “Second Global Patient Safety Challenge; Safe Surgery Saves Lives” in Ireland in the presence of the Minister for Health and Children, Mary Harney, TD. 

The initiative aims to introduce a Surgical Safety Checklist to ensure the entire surgical team has a common understanding of the procedure and risk and a thorough knowledge of the patient prior to any procedure taking place. This checklist could be compared to the pre and post flight checklists which have been used by pilots throughout the airline industry for many years.

National organisations and associations including Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, College of Anaesthetists, Irish Hospital Consultants Association, Irish Medical Organisation, Irish Nurses Organisation and Patient Focus today endorsed the World Health Organization’s Second Global Patient Safety Challenge; Safe Surgery Saves Lives. Their signed letters of endorsement will be formally presented to the World Health Organization at the official launch in Washington later this month.

Speaking at the launch, Dr Tracey Cooper, Chief Executive of the Health Information and Quality Authority said “As the organisation set up to drive quality, safety and accountability in our health and social care services, patient safety is at the heart of what we do. This important initiative puts patient safety at the forefront of the surgical process and we are delighted to see it being embraced by so many organisations and associations. This can only lead to the surgical experience for patients being even safer for the future.”

RCSI President, Professor Frank Keane said “We are delighted to endorse this very worthwhile initiative. The College welcomes any measure that maximizes best practice in surgery and results in increased patient safety in the operating theatre. Safety in healthcare generally is very much a priority at RCSI and this initiative marks an important step for surgical care in Ireland.”

Sheila O’Connor, Patient Focus said “We warmly welcome this initiative. This will have a significant impact on attitude and culture thereby improving patient safety from the outset.”

Ms Pauline Philip, Executive Secretary, Patient Safety, World Health Organization said “The vision of the World Health Organization is that one day that no patient will have an operation anywhere in the world without the "WHO Surgical Safety Checklist" being used.”

This initiative has been endorsed to date by:

Minister for Health and Children

Health Information and Quality Authority

Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland

An Bord Altranais

Aut Even Hospital

Blackrock Clinic

Bon Secours Health System

Bon Secours Hospital Cork

Bon Secours Hospital Glasnevin

Bon Secours Hospital Tralee

Children's University Hospital

Clinical Indemnity Scheme

Connolly Hospital

Galway Clinic

Galway University Hospitals -University College Hospital

Health Management Institute of Ireland

Health Service Executive

Hermitage Clinic

International Society for Quality in Healthcare

Irish Association for Emergency Medicine

Irish Association of Theatre Managers and Superintendents

Irish Association of Vascular Surgeons

Irish Higher Surgical Training Group

Irish Hospital Consultants Association

Irish Institute of Trauma & Orthopaedic Surgery

Irish Medical Organisation

Irish Nurses Organisation

Irish Patients Association

Irish Society for Quality & Safety in Healthcare

Mater Private Hospital

Operating Department Nurses Section INO

Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital

Our Lady's Children's Hospital

Patient Focus

Rotunda Hospital

Royal College Of Physicians Ireland

Shanakiel Hospital

St. John's Hospital

St. Vincent's University Hospital

The Adelaide and Meath Hospital, Dublin Incorporating the National Children's Hospital Department of Surgery

The College of Anaesthetists

VHI

Wexford General Hospital

download the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist

Ends.

 

Further Information: 

Marty Whelan, Head of Communications and Stakeholder Engagement

01 8047651 / 086 2447623 mwhelan@hiqa.ie

Notes to the Editor: 

Surgical care has been an essential component of healthcare worldwide for over a century. Its recent and rapid growth, resulting in care often being delivered in pressurized, crowded and fast-moving environments involving a vast array of technologies, has had a major impact on public health. Annually, an estimated 230 million major operations are performed around the world—one for every 25 people.

There are almost twice as many operations globally as child deliveries, and at far higher risk than child birth. Major complication rates range from 3-16% and death rates from 0.2-10%.depending on the setting, translating into at least 7 million disabling complications and 1 million deaths each year. Half of the complications and cases of death can be avoided, both in the developed and developing world, if certain basic standards of care are followed.

In January 2007, the WHO World Alliance for Patient Safety initiated a new flagship programme, the second Global Patient Safety Challenge, focusing on safe surgery. The new Safe Surgery Saves Lives initiative provides strategies and tools for reducing the rising incidence of deaths and complications from surgery worldwide.

During 2007 and 2008, more than 100 independent experts in surgery, anesthesiology, nursing, and other related disciplines came together to review the evidence and develop a simple strategy for safer surgery. The strategy involves:

(1) Bringing together public health institutions to clearly express that improving surgical care is an essential component of public health;

(2) Establishing a "WHO Surgical Safety Checklist” which is being trialed in eight test sites worldwide;

(3) Defining a basic set of measures for better tracking surgical volume and mortality, "Surgical Vital Statistics".

Later this month, this initiative will be formally launched at a major inauguration event in Washington DC, USA, with the Director-General of WHO, several ministers of health, world experts on surgery, anaesthesiology and nursing as well as representatives of leading professional associations present. At the event, the Alliance will announce the endorsements received from professional associations and societies supporting the "WHO Surgical Safety Checklist" approach.

The finalized "WHO Surgical Safety Checklist" is the outcome of an 18 month experts' consultation and testing process and will be used as a tool to ensure that patients receiving surgical care anywhere in the world get the correct operation at the correct body site, with safe anaesthesia, established infection-prevention measures and effective teamwork for safer care.