This study evaluated the type and effectiveness of resident and faculty coping strategies following an intraoperative error and the interaction with physician gender. Results show that while men and women surgeons experience adverse events at approximately the same rate, the coping methods utilized and effectiveness of the methods varied.

The National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) was developed to monitor and enhance the quality of surgical care. This retrospective study used the NSQIP indicators to identify cases of surgical site infections. Researchers found that nearly 50% of patients were diagnosed following hospital discharge, and many of these infections led to readmissions. Patients who presented with a surgical site infection after discharge were less likely to smoke or have chronic cardiopulmonary illness. The authors suggest that closer postdischarge follow-up might have prevented some readmissions they identified. However, prior studies did not show a benefit to early follow-up. A past AHRQ WebM&M commentary discussed environmental safety in the operating room and its relationship to surgical site infections.