Checklists more effective when physicians are prompted to use them: A case-study in teamwork.

2011 NAMSS Conference Key-Note Speaker, John Nance, is a world-class speaker, consultant and best selling author, who brings a rich diversity of professional training and background to the quest of patient safety and medical practice improvement. In his book , Why Hospitals Should Fly: The Ultimate Flight Plan to Patient Safety and Quality Care Nance explains, “The reality is that hospitals are people, and when, as a team, they can climb free of the failed methods of the past, they indeed can fly, in both spirit and accomplishment.

This story published by the AMA gave an example of such teamwork put into place at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. As we all know, checklists can be found everywhere but as this article demonstrates can only be effective when challenged as a team effort. Read the story here.