Day 2 Reflection: What Statistics Say About Complications During Routine Operations
As a surgery resident with thousands of future cases ahead, it is easy to imagine the day when I will be faced with a potential or actual complication during a “routine operation.” Statistics say it’s almost a certainty. How will I react? Will I provide enough layers in my team to catch the potential complication and create a near miss? Or will I be left apologizing to the family for how I failed them and their loved one? Probably I will be in both situations.
I have had dozens of conversations with family members about dying or dead patients. I have notified wives of 50 years that their husband is brain dead. This has always been in the context of severe disease/trauma, not necessarily as a direct effect of the knife I put to skin. I am all too weary now of what will happen if/when that day comes.
As… Continue reading
Pre-Marseille Post: Researching Peri-Operative Structure for Safety & Efficiency
Hi all, my name is Jeff. I am general surgery resident and am about to take two years off from clinical training for research. Rather than a typical research lab I will be working for my institution on a Peri-operative improvement initiative with leaders at our hospital. We hope to reorganize our peri-op structure to improve efficiency, effectiveness, safety, and decrease cost. This is a the perfect course for me to learn more about patient safety and gain some tools that I can use to positively change the culture in our operating rooms. I hope to be able to refocus some of our attitude on patient safety, patient experiences, and cost effectiveness. I am really hoping to gain some people skills that will enable me to make these change over the next few years. I am so excited to learn from all of your experiences. Look forward to meeting you.
– Jeff