According to the report, up to 30 percent of procedure-specific information could be lost due to miscommunication. For the study, researchers analyzed 160 procedures in 10 specialties over a six-month period to determine any relationships between interruptions, team familiarity and miscommunication.
In addition to team familiarity, the researchers found a positive connection between the frequency of intraoperative interruptions and the frequency of miscommunications. They concluded providers may need to establish evidence-based protocols that target these risks to prevent miscommunication during surgery.
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