NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 4, 2010

BGH Posts 100% for Safe Surgery Checklist Compliance

Brockville—Brockville General Hospital can claim top marks for Safe Surgery Checklist (SSCL) compliance, posting a rating of 100% for its first quarterly report to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care July 15th.

As part of the new provincial mandate that went into effect April 2010, Brockville General Hospital began using surgical safety checklists April 12 to enhance patient safety. These checklists cover the common tasks and items that surgical teams deal with, and function to increase communication between staff before, during and after surgery.

The new safety measure builds on the government’s Patient Safety Indicator Initiative launched in 2008. The list is based on a worldwide study of eight hospitals, including Toronto’s University Health Network consisting of Toronto General, Toronto Western and Princess Margaret hospitals. Also included in the study were hospitals in Jordan, India, the Philippines, the U.S., Britain and New Zealand and Tanzania.

According to Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care web site information, the checklist initiative has been shown to reduce rates of death and complications among patients by standardizing elements such as review of test results, administration of antibiotics, and post-surgical recovery steps. Along with implementation, Ontario hospitals are required to run regular audits with a goal of 100% compliance. The first of these quarterly reports was due to the ministry on July 15th, with the data posted on the ministry’s site as well as each hospital’s web site for public access by July 30th.

“The World Health Organization Surgical Safety Checklist has improved compliance with standards and decreased complications from surgery in eight pilot hospitals where it was evaluated,” says Heather Crawford, VP Clinical Services/Chief Nursing Executive for BGH. “By following a few critical steps, health care professionals can minimize the most common and avoidable risks endangering lives and the well-being of surgical patients. A huge thank you and congratulations to our staff,” she adds, “who are 100% compliant with utilization of the surgical safety checklist, which certainly contributes to the safety of surgical care provided at Brockville General Hospital.”

To view Brockville General Hospital’s compliance rating, background information on SSCL, and a Q&A on the checklists for patients and families dealing with surgery, visit http://www.bgh-on.ca/

For more information, please contact:

Maggie Wheeler Communications Officer BROCKVILLE GENERAL HOSPITAL 613-345-5649 Ext. 1-1504

Healthy people – Outstanding Care

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