Checklist fatigue is a common phenomenon among healthcare professionals. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement invited Thomas Varghese, MD, medical director of Seattle-based University of Washington's program Strong For Surgery, to address surgical checklists as a contributor on its Patient Safety Blog.
Dr. Varghese's tips to avoid checklist fatigue include:
1. Recognize checklists are not passive instruments — keep them active, dynamic and engaging.
2. If a checklist step is missed, explore the barriers to the delivery of the step. It may be unnecessary, or the checklist may be missing a step to facilitate complete care delivery.
3. Tweak checklists when appropriate. Make sure they continue to be relevant to procedures at hand. Customizing checklists is a necessary and important way to encourage proper checklist use.
4. Build checklists into the culture of practice. This is among the easiest ways to support checklist adherence.
5. Allow checklist users to comment on the checklist with regard to ease of use and outcomes. Users know best what works and what doesn't.
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Dr. Varghese's tips to avoid checklist fatigue include:
1. Recognize checklists are not passive instruments — keep them active, dynamic and engaging.
2. If a checklist step is missed, explore the barriers to the delivery of the step. It may be unnecessary, or the checklist may be missing a step to facilitate complete care delivery.
3. Tweak checklists when appropriate. Make sure they continue to be relevant to procedures at hand. Customizing checklists is a necessary and important way to encourage proper checklist use.
4. Build checklists into the culture of practice. This is among the easiest ways to support checklist adherence.
5. Allow checklist users to comment on the checklist with regard to ease of use and outcomes. Users know best what works and what doesn't.
