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Key Topics in Surgical Research and Methodology pp 255–269Cite as

Safety in Surgery

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Abstract

In this chapter we first provide an overview of studies of errors and adverse outcomes in surgery. We also provide a brief summary of approaches to human error and systems thinking, which we contend could enhance current ways of understanding surgical outcomes, both in the analysis of individual cases and the broader understanding of the determinants of good and poor surgical outcomes. Finally, we provide some illustrations of interventions to improve the safety of surgery and the directions we see for the future. We consider that surgery has much to gain from embracing patient safety and drawing on the understanding and techniques that have been developed in health care and a variety of other industries; equally, we believe that patient safety could benefit from wider exposure to methods used in surgical research, in particular the attention given to the monitoring and constant surveillance of outcome and morbidity data characteristic of the best units.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Department of Biosurgery and Surgical Technology, Imperial College London, 10th Floor, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother (QEQM) Building, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, St Mary's Hospital Campus, Praed Street, London, W2 1NY, UK

    Charles Vincent & Krishna Moorthy

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  1. Charles Vincent
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  2. Krishna Moorthy
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. Biosurgery & Surgical Technology, Imperial College London St. Mary's Hospital London, 10th floor QEQM Bldg. Praed Street, London, W2 1NY, United Kingdom

    Thanos Athanasiou  & Ara Darzi  & 

  2. UCSF Global Health Sciences, 3333 California Street, Suite 285, San Francisco L, CA, 94143-0443, USA

    Haile Debas

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Vincent, C., Moorthy, K. (2010). Safety in Surgery. In: Athanasiou, T., Debas, H., Darzi, A. (eds) Key Topics in Surgical Research and Methodology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-71915-1_21

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-71915-1_21

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-71914-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-71915-1

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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