title: Improving patient safety in neurologic surgery.
abstract: The delivery of safe healthcare is one of the fundamental tenets of medicine, but the study of patient safety has lagged in neurosurgery. Patients are at high risk for medical errors, adverse events, and complications. To prevent and mitigate these risks, it is not enough to shame and blame individual practitioners for mistakes or errors. Complete health care delivery systems should be evaluated for ways to reduce adverse events and errors, and restrict the harm they cause. This article reviews the context of patient safety in history, and outlines the ways in which patient safety is being improved.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, 505 Parnassus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94143-0112, USA. Electronic address: hansj@neurosurg.ucsf.edu.
authors.forename: Seunggu J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, 505 Parnassus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94143-0112, USA.
authors.forename: John D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Rolston
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, 505 Parnassus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94143-0112, USA.
authors.forename: Catherine Y
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Lau
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, 505 Parnassus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94143-0112, USA.
authors.forename: Mitchel S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Berger
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D019300:Medical Errors / Q000517:prevention & control*; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects*; D061214:Patient Safety
keywords: Neurosurgery patient safety; Patient safety; Surgical safety