This Sunday, we bring to you a recent article from our archives. What should you do when surgeons and anaesthetists refuse to follow the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist? Here, Dr MC Gupta lists the next steps you can take.

Question: Surgeons and anaesthetists often refuse to strictly follow the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist which is meant to avoid unnecessary/avoidable complications like swabs left in the abdomen. What should I do?

Dr MC Gupta answers:

1. You should display the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist prominently in the OT as well as in the doctors’ room.
2. You should send a circular by name to all surgeons and anaesthetists, under acknowledgement, saying that they must follow the said list, failing which they, and not the hospital, would be directly responsible for the harmful consequences. A copy of this circular should be displayed in the OT as well as the doctors’ room.
3. You should get the WHO check-list printed/included as a part of the hospital case sheet. It should be signed by the concerned surgeons/anaesthetists, testifying that they have followed the check-list.
4. Those surgeons/anaesthetists who refuse to comply should be given the option to comply or resign.

This article was originally published on March 31, 2021.

Disclaimer- The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author's and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of M3 India.

Content from the writer has been directly replicated on the website. No edits have been made.

The writer, Dr MC Gupta is a practising lawyer specialising in medical negligence cases. He also has an MD in Medicine from AIIMS, Delhi where he also worked as a faculty member for 18 years, later working another 10 years as a Professor and Dean at National Institute of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, before pursuing law.