Proposal for a complementary surgical checklist for brain tumor surgery.

Area of Science:

• Neurosurgery
• Patient Safety
• Surgical Checklists

Background:

• The World Health Organization (WHO) generic surgical checklist provides a foundation for patient safety.
• Specialized adaptations are necessary for specific surgical procedures.
• Improving checklists requires input from surgical professionals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and incorporate patient safety aspects not covered by the WHO generic surgical checklist for brain tumor surgery.
• To develop a specific, complementary checklist for neurosurgical procedures.
• To enhance the safety and success rates of brain tumor surgeries.

Main Methods:

• Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) was employed.
• Surgical professionals from three university hospitals participated.
• Items were scored based on suitability and selected for inclusion in a specialized checklist.

Main Results:

• A total of 24 candidate items were identified for the specialized checklist.
• 12 high-scoring items were selected for incorporation.
• These items were distributed across the initial, pre-incision, and final phases of the surgery.

Conclusions:

• Neurosurgical professionals can identify critical safety aspects missing from generic checklists.
• A specific checklist for brain tumor surgery can significantly improve patient safety.
• This specialized checklist addresses unique risks in neurosurgery, complementing the WHO list.