Non-technical Errors Contribute to 68% of Surgical Deaths

Non-technical errors during emergency general surgery significantly impact patient mortality, revealing critical areas for improvement.

• Non-technical errors were found in 67.9% of 1,164 surgical deaths, totaling 1,053 unique mistakes.
• Situational awareness errors were most common (49.3%), followed by decision-making errors (40.9%).

Improving non-technical skills should target behaviors both in and outside the operating room.

• Nearly 90% of errors occurred outside the theatre, emphasizing the need for comprehensive training across surgical and non-surgical teams.