AHRQ Patient Safety Network ► Teamwork, communication and safety climate: a systematic review of interventions to improve surgical culture.

AHRQ Patient Safety Network



Teamwork, communication and safety climate: a systematic review of interventions to improve surgical culture.

Sacks GD, Shannon EM, Dawes AJ, et al. BMJ Qual Saf. 2015 May 22; [Epub ahead of print].

Previous literature has shown that safety culture and nontechnical skills (such as communication) can affect safety and clinical outcomes in patients undergoing surgery. This systematic review identified several interventions that demonstrated effectiveness at improving various aspects of surgical culture, including teamwork and communication. A past AHRQ WebM&M commentary discussed disruptive behavior as a contributor to safety issues in surgery.

PubMed citation 
Available at 

Related Resources

SPECIAL OR THEME ISSUE

Quality of Anesthesia Care. 

Neuman MD, Martinez EA, eds. Anesthesiol Clin. 2011;29:1-178.

NEWSPAPER/MAGAZINE ARTICLE

Doctor uses 'pre-flight' checklist.

Bernhard B. The Orange County Register. April 19, 2006.

STUDY

Operating room teamwork among physicians and nurses: teamwork in the eye of the beholder.

Makary MA, Sexton JB, Freischlag JA, et al. J Am Coll Surg. 2006;202:746-752.

STUDY

Teamwork in the operating room: frontline perspectives among hospitals and operating room personnel.

Sexton JB, Makary MA, Tersigni AR, et al. Anesthesiology. 2006;105:877-884.

View all related resources...