Ensuring Correct Site Surgery

Abstract

Surgery at the wrong site is fortunately an infrequent event, but when it does happen the consequences can be devastating for the patient, their family and the surgical team. Wrong site surgery doesn't just refer to taking out the wrong organ, it is also includes such errors as making an incision on the wrong side, putting in a prosthesis the wrong way round, and administering a local anaesthetic block to the wrong side prior to the surgical procedure – for example an ophthalmic procedure under local anaesthetic. Ensuring the correct surgery is performed on the correct patient at the correct site is a key responsibility for the whole surgical team.