Occasionally I find something that makes so much sense and is so intuitive that I whack myself on the head and wonder why it’s taken modern medicine so long to discover it. Atul Gawande has an amazing perception regarding modern medical practice and patient safety. He is not only a bright young surgeon but he has a gift for bringing medicine to life for physicians and lay persons alike. He is a staff writer at the New Yorker as well as the author of two excellent books, Better: A Surgeon’s Notes on Performance and Complications: A Surgeon’s Notes on an Imperfect Science

Recently Dr. Gawande wrote in his New Yorker column about something very simple- a list. A checklist to be exact. The checklist seems to actually prevent complications and save lives according to the research of Dr. Peter Pronovost.

Yet some physicians refuse to use such checklists because it intereferes with their “autonomy.” These physicians have forgotten that their “autonomy” should be subjugated at all times to the safety and welfare of patients. In short they let their ego override good judgement and sound science.

Checklists exist in many professions. A preflight checklist is what helps keep you commercial flight safely in the air. A pre-administration checklist helps keep your nurse from giving you the wrong dose of the wrong medication. Checklists also exist in many areas of medicine. Whenever you get ready to have a procedure you should ask your physician about the availability, validity, and use of checklists. It may save your life.

If your physician says “I don’t use checklists because it interferes with my judgement” then you know you need a new physician.