The Checklist Manifesto: How To Get Things Right

Front Cover
Profile Books, Jul 9, 2010 - Medical - 209 pages

THE GAME-CHANGING BOOK FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF BEING MORTAL

Today we find ourselves in possession of stupendous know-how, which we willingly place in the hands of the most highly skilled people. But avoidable failures are common, and the reason is simple: the volume and complexity of our knowledge has exceeded our ability to consistently deliver it - correctly, safely or efficiently.

In this groundbreaking book, Atul Gawande makes a compelling argument for the checklist, which he believes to be the most promising method available in surmounting failure. Whether you're following a recipe, investing millions of dollars in a company or building a skyscraper, the checklist is an essential tool in virtually every area of our lives, and Gawande explains how breaking down complex, high pressure tasks into small steps can radically improve everything from airline safety to heart surgery survival rates. Fascinating and enlightening, The Checklist Manifesto shows how the simplest of ideas could transform how we operate in almost any field.

 

Contents

introduction
1
the problem of extreme complexity
15
the checklist
32
the end of the master builder
48
the idea
72
the first try
86
the checklist factory
114
the test
136
the hero in the age of checklists
158
the save
187
acknowledgments
205
Copyright

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About the author (2010)

Atul Gawande is a staff member of Brigham and Women's Hospital, the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and the New Yorker magazine. He is also Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School and Associate Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard School of Public Health.

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