Implementation of the surgical safety checklist in hospitals of Iran; operating room personnel’s attitude, awareness and acceptance

Purpose The WHO Surgical Safety Checklist (SSC) has improved patient safety effectively. Despite the known benefits of applying the checklist before surgery, its implementation is less than universal in practice. The purpose of this paper is to determine the operating room personnel’s attitude, their awareness and knowledge of the SSC, and to evaluate staff acceptance of the SSC (including personal beliefs). Design/methodology/approach This cross-sectional study was conducted in eight tertiary general hospitals in Tehran, Iran. Some 145 operating room personnel (surgeons, anaesthetists and nurses) were selected for the study. Data collection was carried out via a validated questionnaire in three parts which included socio-demographic, attitude, awareness and acceptance. Data were then analysed using the Kruskal–Wallis and χ2 statistical test. Findings Out of the 145 participants in the study, 92 per cent were aware of the existence of the SSC and 73.9 per cent of them were aware of the objectives of SSC. Overall, the attitude to SSC was positive. The attitude of surgeons was positive towards the impact of the SSC on safety and teamwork. Surgeons were significantly more sensitive to the barriers of SSC application compared to nurses and anaesthetists (p=0.046). Among the three groups, nurses had the highest level of support for SSC (p=0.001). Practical implications Despite high acceptance of the checklist among staff, there is still a gap in knowledge about when exactly the checklist should be used. Therefore, involvement of all surgical team members to complete the checklist process, support of senior managers, on-going education and training and consideration of the barriers to its implementation are all key areas that need to be taken into account. Originality/value This is the first research to examine the operating room personnel’s attitude, awareness and acceptance about SSC in Iranian hospitals. The outcomes of this study provide documentation and possible justification for effective establishment of SSC in Iran and other countries.