ASA Supports IHI Sprint Action Day For WHO Surgical Safety Checklist

The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) is pleased to join with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and the World Health Organization (WHO) Surgical Safety Checklist team in support of the Surgical Safety Checklist “Sprint.” To help quickly spread the introduction of a tool that has shown major reductions in mortality and harm, the goal of the Sprint is to have every hospital in the US test the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist (or an adaptation of it) at least one time with one operating room team by April 1, 2009.

Anesthesiologists have played a crucial role in introducing and implementing the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist in ORs around the world. We hope you and your organization will join the Sprint.

• If your organization has not yet tested the checklist, we encourage you to visit the IHI website for a multitude of tools and resources, including a version of the checklist adapted for US hospitals.
• If you have tested or plan to test the checklist, please let IHI know by filling out a brief survey.
  

On Tuesday, March 10, 2009, we invite you to take part in “Sprint Action Day,” a day designed to support and accelerate use of the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist. Whether you’re new to the checklist or you’ve implemented it throughout your organization (or are somewhere in between) you and your organization can participate. Use this day to test the checklist, to move from testing to implementation, or to share your experiences with using the checklist with IHI and other facilities around the country. Visit the Sprint Action Day website for details.