To proactively devise a patient safety strategy for anesthesia, the authors of this article summarized a series of mandatory standards implemented at Boston’s nine component teaching hospitals. The authors discuss the detailed process that led to the highlighted standards, including the need to balance physician autonomy with the larger goal of improving patient care. One of the objectives from their efforts was to demonstrate the applicability of the process and to counter increases in anesthesia-related malpractice claims. They suggest the need for both a strong commitment to leadership and the development of a process to foster similar standards and improvements throughout the country.